August 2014 Standards of Observance
Text: © 220141 Messianic Jewish RabbinicalRabbinical Council,Council, New New Haven, Haven, Connecticut Connecticut Photogrhotographyaphy:: ©© 20072007 LauraLaura J. Earle, Manchester, Michigan Michigan
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MJRC Standards of Observance Table of Contents
Introduction i The MJRC ii Standards of Observance iii The Document
Section One - Halakhah and Messianic Judaism - 1 1 1.0 Halakhah: Introduction 2 1.1 The Halakhic Authority of the MJRC 5 1.2 The Halakhic Approach of the MJRC 9 1.3 The Messianic Jewish Rabbi
Section Two - Issues of Status - 14 14 2.0 Jewish Status: Introduction 15 2.1 Jewish Status: Decision & Commentary 16 2.2 Kohen and Levi: Decision & Commentary 17 2.3 Jews, Gentiles, & Messianic Jewish Congregations: Introduction 18 2.3 Jews, Gentiles, & Messianic Jewish Congregations: Decisions & Commentary
Section Three - Kashrut - 21 21 3.0 Kashrut: Introduction 21 3.1 Kashrut: Decisions & Commentary
Section Four - Community Practices - 26 26 4.0 Shabbat: Introduction 27 4.1 Shabbat: Decisions & Commentary 34 4.2 Holidays: Introduction 35 4.2 Holidays: Decisions & Commentary 41 4.3 Prayer: Introduction 43 4.3 Prayer: Decisions & Commentary 47 4.4 Tevilat Mashiach 48 4.5 Zichron Mashiach
Section Five - Lifecycle - 50 50 5.0 Family Purity: Introduction 50 5.1 Family Purity: Decision & Commentary
MJRC Standards of Observance M essianic J ewish R abbinical C ouncil Standards of Observance
The MJRC The Messianic Jewish Rabbinical Council (MJRC) was formally established in May 2006. It consists of a group of ordained Messianic Jewish Rabbis and associated leaders who share a common vision for Messianic Jewish practice rooted in Torah, instructed by Tradition, and faithful to Messiah Yeshua in the twenty-first century.
The MJRC had its beginnings five years earlier. At that time a set of Messianic Jewish leaders from New England invited some of their colleagues from outside the region to join them in working on a common set of halakhic standards for themselves and their congregations.
Standards of While other areas of Messianic Jewish life are of profound importance, such as Observance worship, ethics, education, and social concern, we believed that halakhic standards had received far less attention than their place in Messianic Jewish life warranted. We saw the need for such standards in our own lives, and as Rabbis also received numerous requests from others for halakhic guidance – guidance which up to this point we had been able to provide only in an improvised, ad hoc, and provisional manner.
The standards of observance contained in the present document are the fruit of our continued study and deliberation. They embody in practical form the core beliefs and values that are at the heart of the MJRC.
We, the members of the MJRC, have committed ourselves to implement these standards in our own lives, and to teach and promote them in the congregations we lead. We also commend these standards for the consideration of the entire Messianic Jewish movement, and hope that others outside our immediate sphere will benefit from the work we have done.
We recognize that the Messianic Jewish movement consists mainly of people unaccustomed to or uncomfortable with traditional Jewish religious life, and those we are seeking to reach for Yeshua generally have a similar background. In large part this results from the high rate of secularization and assimilation among twenty-first century Jews. However, this profile also fits our calling as a movement for Yeshua within the Jewish world. Just as he came to seek and save the lost, and devoted his energy especially to reaching the disenfranchised among the Jewish people, so our mission is directed primarily to Jews who have little knowledge of or attachment to traditional Jewish practice.
In light of this reality, the MJRC decided that it should not formulate standards
MJRC Standards of Observance i Standards of of observance that aim to be a new and definitive interpretation of the Torah’s Observance contemporary requirements. Of course, Messianic Jewish Rabbis are sometimes continued compelled to offer creative rulings adapted to the new circumstances of the Messianic age inaugurated by Yeshua’s death and resurrection. Nevertheless, the MJRC found that in most cases it was reasonable to presume the basic teaching of the halakhic tradition, especially as understood by contemporary authorities who appreciate the dynamic nature of that tradition and the need for its wise development in a rapidly changing world.
Our aim instead was to articulate realistic and practical standards and guidelines for Messianic Jewish observance that point us and our communities toward the way of covenant faithfulness. We want to set out on a journey with Yeshua that will lead us all, in diverse ways, to a richer and fuller life as Jews obedient to the Torah through Messiah Yeshua, and obedient to Yeshua through the Torah.
The Document This document employs two terms that require special explanation. The first term is basic practice. This refers to standards of observance that members of the MJRC are themselves committed to follow in their own lives. They will also seek to order communal events of their congregations in accordance with these standards, and will employ them in instructing those preparing for conversion. While members of the MJRC commend these standards of basic practice to all members of their congregations, they will not be imposed as requirements for congregational membership.
The second term is expanded practice. This refers to a more demanding level of observance, beyond basic practice, that includes a fuller expression of traditional forms of Jewish life. An expanded practice is one that is explicitly commended by the MJRC, but is not required of its Rabbis or those converted under their auspices. The practices so listed do not exhaust the range of worthy expressions of Torah observance that a Messianic Jew might adopt, but provide concrete examples of the shape such observance could take.
This document includes two types of material. The main body of the document, in sans serif font, consists of decisions approved by the full Council. Each of these decisions derives from hours (and sometimes days) of Council deliberation. Together they constitute the Standards of Observance, referred to in the document’s title.
The document also contains reflective introductions and explanatory commentaries on the Standards, printed in a serif font. Prepared under the auspices of the MJRC Faith and Halakhic Standards Committee, the commentaries aim to explain the meaning of the Standards, the reasoning behind them, and their importance for our lives. While the commentaries are endorsed by the MJRC, they do not possess the same level of authority for the MJRC as the Standards themselves.
Like most Messianic Jews, we acknowledge the Torah as the constitution governing all Jewish life, and seek to obey it in accordance with the teaching, example, and redemptive work of Yeshua the Messiah while also drawing upon Jewish tradition, especially those practices and concepts that have won near-universal acceptance by devout Jews through the centuries. This commitment to the Torah has motivated us to seek a common approach to its practical observance.
MJRC Standards of Observance ii The Document We rejoice in the opportunity to work together as Messianic Jewish leaders who continued desire to discover together what obedience to the Torah means for our daily lives. Like others in our movement, we are only beginning the journey. But we are determined to walk together, and to grow steadily in knowledge and observance of the Torah, and in faithfulness to our Righteous Messiah.
MJRC Standards of Observance iii SECTION ONE Halakhah and Messianic Judaism
1.0 HALAKHAH: ctually, we all do, for various each other responsible without such a INTRODUCTION A reasons. The most obvious is that it standard. So it is that we in our congregations was the people of Israel collectively, rather need halakhic guidelines to function as Who needs Halakhah? than individuals as individuals, who were kehillot kodesh – holy communities. called into covenant with God, to honor God Secondly, we all need Halakhah because by living according to the Torah. This it provides wonderful freedom. We all collective call meant that all Israel was remember what it was like when we were responsible for the covenant fidelity of its kids and we said to our mothers, “Ma, individual members. A breach by anyone I don’t know what to do. I’m bored.” put the entire people in covenant jeopardy Halakhah gives us guidance as to what – the status of having broken the covenant do to in every area of life. This comes as a – which triggers dire consequences. special gift when we keenly want to know The clearest illustration of this principle is “What does it mean for me to glorify God found in Joshua 7, when Joshua and the in this situation?” In fact, this is arguably people of Israel are unexpectedly repelled the key question in Jewish spiritual life. in their attempt to capture the city of Ai. Halakhah builds upon the distilled wisdom Hashem had forbidden the people to take of countless generations of our people who any spoils from the city, and the chapter took seriously their obligations to God and opens by attributing their corporate defeat Torah. Halakhah helps us to identify the to an act of individual disobedience: “But shape of obedience, so that we might retrace the people of Israel broke faith in regard to with the stylus of our own lives patterns of the devoted things; for Achan the son of holiness worn deep by generations of our Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the forbears. And when we do so as our gift of tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted love to Hashem, it brings joy, not only to things; and the anger of the Lord burned us, but also to Him. against the people of Israel” (Judges 7:1). Finally, we all need Halakhah because it Notice how the sin of one man, Achan, is not only binds us to a standard of holiness portrayed as the entire people having bro- but also looses us from needless guilt and ken faith with God – entering into worry. A case in point: David was offended covenant jeopardy. This is why, once Achan by something Isaac said. Isaac went and is singled out, the entire people must apologized to David, but David was not able participate in the enforcement of the judicial to forgive – he was too hurt by the offense. decree against him (Judges 7:25). Just as the Isaac felt terrible about what he had done, people as a whole were required to obey, and so he returned to David, and apologized so it is the people as a whole who must deal a second time. Again, David responded with the consequences of disobedience. coldly. Now Isaac was desperate. What Halakhah is our understanding of what could he do? He decided to go to David a third time – with the same result. we are holding ourselves and each other responsible to do in honoring God through Isaac then spoke of his dilemma to a friend Torah obedience. We simply cannot hold knowledgeable in Halakhah. His friend
MJRC Standards of Observance 1 Halakhah Introduction told him: “Don’t apologize again. Based to forgive and his own self-recrimination. continued on Joseph’s experience with his brothers, They were both able to get on with their Halakhah sets the limit of three times in lives – and they are still friends today! asking someone to forgive an offense – lest When we interpret and apply Halakhah one forever be in thrall to a bitter person with wisdom and love, it brings freedom unable or unwilling to forgive.” Great wisdom! rather than bondage. When we treat And more than that, great freedom. By Halakhah as an extension of God’s Law, telling us not only what to do, but also by a guideline for communal obedience and setting limits on what one must do, relationship, we experience the character Halakhah has the power to set us free. it shares with Torah, “the perfect Law that When Isaac heeded the voice of his friend gives liberty” (James 1:25). and the wisdom of Halakhah, and stopped apologizing, he was free from David’s inability Enjoy!
1.1 THE HALAKHIC 1.1.1 Halakhah and Halakhic Authority AUTHORITY Halakhah refers to the authoritative application of the rules of the Torah in the OF THE MJRC form of concrete decisions in response to the circumstances of daily life – all in the context of the covenant life of the people of Israel. Because every age, location, culture, and socio-political circumstance is unique, new questions inevitably arise which lead to fresh developments in Halakhah. Thus, while rooted in a stable ground of well-defined and universally-recognized laws, Halakhah remains dynamic, a living and growing organism rather than a static and inflexible legal code.
Halakhic authority consists in the communally acknowledged competence to interpret, develop, and apply the rules of the Torah for a particular situation and social group.
1.1.2 Halakhic Authority, the Jewish People, and Rabbinic Tradition
The Torah calls for the establishment of a central court possessing the authority to deal with complex judicial cases where the application of the law is unclear and where the final ruling will presumably constitute a significant legal precedent (Deuteronomy 17:8–13). Later Jewish interpreters understood this text as authorizing not only the communal judicial process but also the expansion, explanation, and application of Jewish law in non-judicial contexts (b. Shabbat 23a). These interpreters likewise claimed that the Sages of the rabbinic tradition constituted the legitimate successors to the central court of Deuteronomy 17.
Matthew 23:2–3 alludes to an interpretation of Deuteronomy 17 resembling that which appears in the rabbinic literature of a later era, and affirms that the “Scribes (i.e., Torah Teachers) and Pharisees” are in some sense the proper heirs of Moses. While the book of Matthew as a whole – and Matthew 23 in particular – levels fierce criticism at the conduct of many of these “Scribes and Pharisees,” its terminology and halakhic orientation have much in common with what we know of the early rabbinic movement. It is likely that the book’s author knew segments of the early rabbinic movement, embraced and promoted many of their core tenets and halakhic perspectives, yet found some of their primary leaders lacking in character, spiritual discernment, and good judgment – as reflected especially
MJRC Standards of Observance 2 1.1 The Halakhic in their response to Yeshua and their treatment of his disciples. In light of the Authority high tensions of the period, the transmission of this qualified endorsement of the of the MJRC “Scribes and Pharisees” in Matthew 23:2–3 – with its allusion to Deuteronomy 17 continued – is remarkable.
While halakhic authority is vested in particular leaders and groups of leaders, it is fundamentally bestowed by Hashem on the people as a whole (Deuteronomy 16:18; 17:14–15; Esther 9:23, 26–28) – “catholic (i.e., universal) Israel,” as it was called by Solomon Schechter. Though the worldwide community of “catholic Israel” has always been diverse in thought and custom, its wisdom concerning covenantally faithful Jewish life becomes manifest in the general consensus of those Jews who acknowledge Hashem as Israel’s sovereign and affirm the Tanakh as the sacred written medium of divine revelation. Over many centuries this worldwide community has placed its seal upon the rabbinic tradition as the central vehicle by which the Torah – and its halakhic expression for the life of the Jewish people – has been authoritatively transmitted from generation to generation. The MJRC believes that this communal determination faithfully represents the divine purpose for the Jewish people, a purpose which we see as already implicit in Yeshua’s recognition of proto-rabbinic Pharisaic authority in Matthew 23.
1.1.3 Halakhic Authority, the Bilateral Ekklesia, and the Wounded Two-Fold Tradition
Though the Sages of the rabbinic tradition are legitimate bearers of halakhic authority, they are not the only leaders with such competence. As the embodiment of heavenly Wisdom and the living Torah, Yeshua himself is the ultimate earthly source of halakhic authority. While he acknowledged the authority of some leaders in the wider Jewish community, he also formed his own messianic sub- community and bestowed upon its designated leaders – the Apostles – the authority to bind and loose (Matthew 16:16–19; 18:18). In doing so, Yeshua was authorizing the Apostles to regulate the life of the messianic community according to their Master’s interpretation of the Torah and according to the guidance of his Spirit who writes the Torah on the hearts of his disciples (Matthew 28:18–20; John 14:26; Jeremiah 31:33; 2 Corinthians 3:2–3). Following their Master, the Apostles respected the authority of the wider Jewish community and its leaders for the governance of public Jewish life (Acts 23:4-5) but also asserted their freedom to diverge from its rulings when they were clearly incompatible with the commandments of the risen Messiah (Acts 4:18–20; 5:27–32).
The halakhic authority given to the Apostles by Yeshua had a bilateral character, in conformity to the bilateral character of the ekklesia in which it was exercised. (The ekklesia of Yeshua is inherently bilateral in that it is constituted by two distinct yet united corporate spheres – one which is primarily made up of Jews and the other which is primarily made up of Gentiles.) The halakhah appropriate to the Jewish ekklesia differed from the halakhah appropriate to the multinational ekklesia (Acts 15:19–21; Acts 21:17–26; 1 Corinthians 7:17–19), and it appears as though each of the Apostles had a mandate to function primarily in one or the other sphere (Galatians 2:7–10).
MJRC Standards of Observance 3 1.1 The Halakhic The tragic disappearance of the Jewish ekklesia and its halakhic tradition Authority disrupted the transmission of this bilateral halakhic tradition. In losing its Jewish of the MJRC center and its bilateral context, the entire community of Yeshua’s followers continued suffered a grave wound which disfigured its understanding and application of the Torah. Nevertheless, in its many diverse historical expressions and traditions the multinational ekklesia retained its commission from the Messiah to shape a covenantally faithful way of life. Along with this commission came a type of “halakhic” authority (for a community of non-Jews attached to Israel) and the presence of the Spirit; the risen Yeshua continues to speak and act in its midst.
The disappearance of a messianic ekklesia within the Jewish people also damaged the halakhic and prophetic capacity of “catholic Israel” – which remains incomplete without the presence of Jewish disciples of Yeshua at its very heart, and without a living connection to the multinational ekklesia which has been joined by the Messiah to Israel as its extension among the Gentiles. Nevertheless, in their many diverse historical expressions and traditions, the Jewish people and their recognized leaders have retained their legitimate halakhic authority, and God continues to operate among them and through them in order to shape their life in accordance with the Torah.
1.1.4 Halakhic Authority and the Modern Messianic Jewish Movement
As participants in a movement larger than itself, the MJRC affirms its conviction that Messianic Judaism emerged in the 20th century as a work of Hashem with the twin aims of restoring a Yeshua-following community within the wider Jewish world and a Torah-observant Jewish community within a renewed bilateral ekklesia. While claiming to be the resurrected form of a lost community of the past, the Messianic Jewish movement also undeniably lacks direct historical continuity with its ancient prototype.
Messianic Jews see themselves as participating in a movement of spiritual renewal bringing healing to the wounded and divided people of God. We are not ourselves the goal, but are servants of a greater purpose for the two communities to which we are bound in diverse ways. As the Pietist movement of the 17th and 18th centuries breathed life into the Christian world, and as the Hasidic movement of the 18th and 19th centuries opened new doors for the revitalization of the Jewish people, so we believe that the Messianic Jewish movement is called to become a gift to the entire two-fold people of God.
As such, the authority of the Messianic Jewish movement is prophetic rather than institutional. In keeping with the historical pattern of all such renewal movements, its legitimacy is not something that can be determined unequivocally in the present. The prophetic claim of the Messianic Jewish movement now remains a disputed proposition which can only be definitively confirmed or disconfirmed by its future fruit and by the eventual recognition or non-recognition it receives from the wider communities in which it claims a prophetic role.
1.1.5 Halakhic Authority and the MJRC
Within the context of the Messianic Jewish movement and its prophetic role, the MJRC sees itself as called to serve a particular halakhic function. The MJRC does
MJRC Standards of Observance 4 1.1 The Halakhic not view itself as the only halakhic authority in the Messianic Jewish movement, Authority nor does it claim to be the movement’s highest halakhic authority. It does, of the MJRC however, believe that it has halakhic authority for its own immediate sphere and continued for those beyond that sphere who look to it for guidance. The MJRC believes that its role is to be a pioneer in the development of a halakhic way of life among Messianic Jews, and thereby to stimulate serious halakhic thinking and practice within the movement as a whole. It holds this conviction for the following reasons:
a. The MJRC was founded by Rabbis ordained within the first congregational association in the Messianic Jewish movement (The Union of Messianic Jewish Congregations or UMJC), an organization distinguished within the wider movement for its appreciation of the Jewish and Christian traditions in all their richness and diversity, and for its support of theological education;
b. The MJRC is characterized by a commitment to active participation in the community and tradition of the Jewish people, and to respectful and teachable partnership with the community and tradition of the multinational ekklesia;
c. The MJRC includes some of the finest scholars in the Messianic Jewish movement and rabbis who are capable of interacting knowledgeably with classic Jewish texts and halakhic tradition;
d. The MJRC tests all of its decisions through a process of practical and pastoral application in the congregations in which its member rabbis live and serve;
e. The MJRC is the only leadership body in the Messianic Jewish movement that has engaged in the halakhic process over an extended period of time, laboring together since the beginning of this century to develop corporate standards of Torah observance, in faithfulness to the biblical text and with sensitivity to the Spirit of Yeshua.
As is the case for the authority of our movement as a whole, the legitimacy of our claims cannot be determined unequivocally in the present but awaits a divine judgment to be rendered in the course of future events. If our claims are justified over time, then we are an integral part of a process in which the bilateral halakhic authority of the apostolic tradition is being restored, the bilateral ekklesia is being healed, and a corporate Torah-faithful witness to Yeshua is restored to the Jewish people.
1.2 THE HALAKHIC In this section, we will discuss the function of Scripture, tradition, and new APPROACH OF circumstances in the halakhic process. THE MJRC 1.2.1 Scripture and the Halakhic Process
Our approach to halakhic decision-making is based on a recognition of the paramount importance and authority of Scripture (i.e., the Tanakh and the Apostolic Writings) in the development of Halakhah.
In accord with Jewish tradition as a whole, we recognize the unique place of the Tanakh in matters of Halakhah. Within the Tanakh, the Torah (the Pentateuch) articulates the mitzvot and is therefore always foundational in the development
MJRC Standards of Observance 5 1.2 The Halakhic of Halakhah. In principle, issues become halakhic because they are connected Approach to some area of life in which the Torah reveals these authoritative norms. The of the MJRC Prophets and the Writings amplify and clarify the intent of Torah. continued As Messianic Jews, we affirm the special precedence given to scriptural law in traditional Halakhah, while likewise affirming the scriptural character of the Apostolic Writings (i.e., the New Testament) and the unique ways in which they contribute to halakhic development. These writings convey to us the teachings of Yeshua and the Apostles and serve as an entirely reliable guide to the intent of the Mosaic Torah.
Just as teaching associated directly with the person of Moses is foundational in relation to other material in the Tanakh, so teaching associated directly with the person of Yeshua is foundational in relation to other material in the Apostolic Writings. This principle is evident in the way Paul contrasts halakhic instruction deriving from the teaching of Yeshua with his own rulings on related matters (1 Corinthians 7:10, 12, 25), without detracting from the authority he possessed as an Apostle.
In the Gospels, Yeshua acted as Israel’s pre-eminent prophetic teacher who illumined the purpose of the Torah and the inner orientation we should have in fulfilling it. We consider his teaching and example as definitive in matters of Halakhah as in every other sphere and therefore his teaching has a direct bearing on how we interpret the Torah as a whole and on how we address particular halakhic questions. At the same time, we recognize that most of his teaching was only indirectly halakhic in character, and that care must be exercised in interpretation so that prophetic hyperbole not be read as binding legislation (e.g., Matthew 5:29–30).
The Book of Acts and the Apostolic Letters provide crucial halakhic guidance for us in our lives as Messianic Jews. They are particularly important in showing us how the early Jewish disciples of Yeshua combined a concern for Israel’s distinctive calling according to the Torah with recognition of the new relationship with God and Israel available to Gentiles in the Messiah. They also provide guidelines relevant to other areas of Messianic Jewish Halakhah, including (but not restricted to) areas such as distinctive Messianic rites, household relationships, and dealing with secular authorities.
1.2.2 Jewish Tradition and the Halakhic Process
In addressing matters of Halakhah, Scripture always has the highest halakhic authority and sanctity. Thus, when traditional Judaism distinguishes between laws that are d’oraita (i.e., ordained by the Tanakh) and those that are d’rabbanan (i.e., established by rabbinic authority), precedence is always given to those that are d’oraita.
Nevertheless, in the real-life unfolding of the halakhic process other sources often play a more visible role than Scripture in the formation of halakhic principles and the detailing of halakhic norms. While all Halakhah is rooted in Scripture, the text usually provides limited information on how the mitzvot are to be lived out and how they are to be adapted to new circumstances. Over the centuries, our rabbis deliberated and developed other sources for the halakhic process, central among
MJRC Standards of Observance 6 1.2 The Halakhic them are the Babylonian and the Jerusalem Talmuds, with the latter having special Approach relevance for mitzvot observed by Jews living in the Land of Israel. In order to add of the MJRC concrete structure and substance to our present halakhic decision-making, our first continued consideration is the way the mitzvot have been elaborated in these sources and understood and observed by Jews throughout history and in the present.
Jewish tradition holds that Hashem has given substantial authority over the practical outworking of the Torah in Israel’s corporate life to the people and their recognized leaders. This principle is symbolized most powerfully by the ancient role of the rabbinic court in announcing the New Moon and in intercalating the calendar. The pattern of holy days was established in the Torah, but the determination of precisely when those days were to be observed rested in the hands of the people of Israel and its leaders in the Land of Israel (b. Rosh Hashanah 25a-25b) who relayed this determination to the Jewish people everywhere (Sefer Hamitzvot 153). As noted above, this principle finds support in Yeshua’s teaching in Matthew 23:3, which urges obedience to the decisions of the “Scribes (Torah Teachers) and Pharisees,” echoing Deuteronomy 17:10 and resembling later rabbinic use of the same text. As disciples of Yeshua, we are reluctant to depart from those halakhic practices that have been formulated by the Sages, accepted as normative by Jews throughout the centuries, and acknowledged by most branches of Judaism. On this basis, we do not need to justify adherence to such practices.
It is sufficient to show that they are widely accepted and observed traditions. To depart from such traditions, on the other hand, we must be able to provide some reason – theological, exegetical, or practical. The weight required for these reasons will vary for each halakhic tradition according to its centrality in the framework of Jewish life and the consensus it enjoys among committed Jews.
Nevertheless, if the teaching and example of Messiah Yeshua and the Apostolic Writings warrant a departure from certain traditional rulings, we are responsible to strike out in new directions. One of the most significant of these new directions follows from the teaching and example of Messiah Yeshua, whose mission took him more to the sick than to the healthy, and who, while welcoming the righteous and the pious, eagerly pursued the am ha’aretz (those less scrupulous in their observance). We recognize that our halakhic orientation must take into account those Jews who have been alienated from their own heritage. Eager to heal the wounds of Israel, we also seek to lead those of ambiguous Jewish status back to the way of their ancestors. While we are committed to not diluting the demands of the Torah, we want to bring many near to Torah who are now far from it. When we depart from certain traditional rulings, we do not depart from tradition itself but seek its repair.
We recognize that the new circumstances of our times require adaptation in traditional practices. The various branches of contemporary Judaism take this into account in their corporate responsa, with varying degrees of willingness to depart from traditional norms. Our halakhic decision-making too requires thoughtful reflection on these new circumstances, and the changes they may require. In this process, we review the halakhic analyses and rulings of all branches of Judaism to learn how they have responded and are responding to many of the same challenges we face. The halakhic way of life commended by the MJRC should
MJRC Standards of Observance 7 1.2 The Halakhic not be viewed as an endorsement of any one of these branches as either the Approach functional starting point or goal of Messianic Jewish life. We do, however, seek to of the MJRC honor those practices which have withstood the test of time. continued 1.2.3 Christian Tradition and the Halakhic Process
As noted above, the halakhic authority given to the Apostles by Yeshua had a bilateral character corresponding to the bilateral character of the ekklesia of Jews and Gentiles in which it was exercised. The disruption in the transmission of this bilateral tradition caused by the tragic disappearance of the Jewish ekklesia disfigured the understanding of the Torah passed on within theekklesia of the nations, but it did not nullify the ekklesia’s enduring apostolic authority in its own proper sphere. This means that in certain matters we must learn not only from Jewish tradition but also from ecclesial tradition.
We have already stated our acceptance of the Apostolic Writings as Scripture, and the central role those writings play in our interpretation of the Torah. In doing so, we are recognizing as authoritative a collection of books which, while composed mainly or exclusively by Jews, has been canonized, preserved, and transmitted to us by Christian tradition. We are grateful to the ekklesia of the nations for this treasure which it has cherished and kept and which now enriches us.
However, the disappearance of the Jewish ekklesia and the growth of anti- Jewish sentiment and belief in the historical church undermined the authority of ecclesial teachers in their halakhic interpretation of the Apostolic Writings as applied to the distinctive features of Jewish life. Nevertheless, some elements of the halakhic approach of Yeshua and the Apostles (e.g., the centrality of the two love commandments) were equally applicable to both wings of the bilateral ekklesia, and in its treatment of such matters ecclesial tradition retains much wisdom which can benefit Jews as well as Gentiles. Similarly, some elements of the non-halakhic teaching of Yeshua and the Apostles (e.g., concerning the deity of Yeshua) were equally applicable to both wings of the bilateral ekklesia, and in its treatment of such matters ecclesial tradition is again worthy of our study and discerning reception.
The Apostolic Writings also command certain practices (e.g., Tevilat Mashiach and Zichron Mashiach) without providing concrete detail on how they are to be observed. Just as the practices given through Moses cannot be adequately lived-out apart from the living tradition of those Jews who have sought to do so from generation to generation, so the practices ordained by Yeshua cannot be adequately lived-out apart from the living tradition of those disciples of Yeshua who have sought to do so from generation to generation. As disciples of Yeshua, our manner of living out the commandments given through Moses will sometimes diverge from that of other Jews, but serious engagement with and learning from Jewish tradition is essential to the formation of that manner of life. Similarly, as Torah-observant Jews our manner of living out the commandments of Yeshua will sometimes diverge from that of gentile disciples of Yeshua, even though the commandments themselves are shared in common. Nevertheless, serious engagement with and learning from Christian tradition is essential to the formation of our practice of those commandments.
MJRC Standards of Observance 8 1.2 The Halakhic 1.2.4 Our Challenging Task Approach We cannot know how the bilateral ekklesia would have developed had its Jewish of the MJRC corporate expression survived and thrived. Similarly, we cannot know how continued Jewish tradition would have developed had the Jewish disciples of Yeshua been accepted and respected by our entire people at an early stage of the development of Halakhah. We do not strive to articulate or re-create what might have been. However, we cannot avoid engaging in the task of shaping today’s Messianic Jewish practice from the textual sources and other resources available to us today. This task places enormous demands on Messianic Jewish leaders, requiring of us a serious devotion to study, prayer, discussion, and corporate decision-making in a spirit of humility and charity. At the same time, we believe that the resurrected Messiah dwells among us and within us, and we rely upon his ongoing guidance as we seek to carry on his work of raising up the fallen tent of David within the people of Israel (Acts 15:14–18; Amos 9:11–12).
1.3 THE MESSIANIC 1.3.1 A Messianic Jewish Rabbi is a Jewish follower of Yeshua qualified by JEWISH RABBI: a supervised course of study, authorized by his or her ordaining authority, and DECISIONS & empowered by the Spirit through the rite of ordination to expound and apply Torah COMMENTARY as fulfilled in and mediated through the person, teaching, and work of Yeshua. As a custodian of Israel’s revelation and holy tradition, including the Apostolic Writings, and as a disciple of Mashiach Yeshua Rabbenu, a Messianic Jewish Rabbi teaches Israel the ways of God and models this tradition for the members of the Messianic Jewish community in a manner imbued with the Spirit of God. This definition of the nature of a Messianic Jewish Rabbi builds upon an understanding of the essence of what has been and continues to be common to all rabbis throughout every generation. A rabbi is defined first and foremost by his or her relationship to our sacred tradition and our community. In this role, a rabbi serves as a teacher and symbolic exemplar of Torah for the community, principally in matters of religious practice and instruction. This historical understanding of the nature of a rabbi is reflected in the text of the UMJC’s Teudat Semikha (Ordination Certificate): This know in all of Israel that so-and-so was appointed to the role of rabbi and teacher by the Union of Messianic Jewish Congregations, by virtue of finishing a course of study in Scripture, learning the mitzvot, and studying the traditions of Israel in our yeshiva under the authority of the council of supervising rabbis. The recipient of this certificate obligates himself to carrying out the ways of the Holy One, blessed be He, and is found to be on the path of acquiring knowledge and studying the pleasant ways of the Almighty and Mashiach Yeshua. From the date written above the recipient of this certificate may function in the role of rabbi and teacher among our people Israel. May the Holy One, blessed be He, enlighten our eyes and attach our hearts to his Torah. According to this definition, five things qualify an individual to serve as a Messianic Jewish Rabbi. First, a Messianic Jewish Rabbi must be Jewish in accordance with the standards of Jewish status affirmed by the MJRC. Stating explicitly that a Rabbi must be a Jew is an assertion that the MJRC stands in the historic understanding of the rabbinate in the wider Jewish community.
MJRC Standards of Observance 9 1.3 The Messianic Second, a Messianic Jewish Rabbi must be a follower of Yeshua who exhibits Jewish Rabbi: commitment to Yeshua in both word and deed. Commitment to Yeshua is what Decisions & distinguishes the Messianic Jewish rabbinate. Messianic Jewish Rabbis should exemplify Commentary the life, message, and teachings of Yeshua as they seek to teach “Israel the ways of God continued and model this tradition for the members of the Messianic Jewish community.”
Third, a Messianic Jewish Rabbi must be qualified by a supervised course of study. Attainment of the Messianic Jewish Rabbinate cannot be acquired through self-study. Anyone aspiring to rabbinic ordination must study Scripture, learn halakhah and the traditions of Israel, and be strengthened in devotion to Yeshua the Messiah through a course of training under the supervision of one or more Messianic Jewish Rabbis (1 Peter 5:5). Such a course of study is essential for the personal and spiritual formation of the candidate and for the development of Messianic Jewish Rabbis who display integrity of thought and action (kol talmid chacham she’ein tocho kevaro einno talmid chacham “Any talmid chacham whose character does not correspond to their exterior is not a talmid chacham”; b. Yoma 72b; cf. Matthew 15:11). This understanding of rabbinic education is modeled on the practice of Messiah Yeshua and his disciples and is also evinced in classical rabbinic education (e.g., Matthew 4:18–25; b. Berachot 27a). Fourth, ordination to the Messianic Jewish Rabbinate can only be authorized through the agency of an ordaining authority, which is normally affiliated with the educational institution overseeing the candidate’s preparation for the rabbinate. This understanding of the role of the ordaining authority in ordaining a Messianic Jewish Rabbi is adopted from traditional Jewish practice and is consonant with historic Christian practice. Fifth, a Messianic Jewish Rabbi must be empowered by the Spirit through the rite of ordination. The Spirit plays a central role in ordaining people to particular vocations (e.g., Numbers 27:18; Deuteronomy 34:9; 2 Kings 2:14–15; Acts 6:5–6, 13:2–3; 1 Timothy 4:14). Throughout the Scriptures, the giving of the Spirit is conjoined with the laying-on of hands by those in authority. According to this definition, four functions are the essential responsibilities of all Messianic Jewish Rabbis. First, Messianic Jewish Rabbis “expound and apply Torah as fulfilled in and mediated through the person, teaching, and work of Yeshua.” The statement understands Torah in the broadest sense. At its core, the Torah entails the Scriptures revealed to Israel and canonized in the Tanakh and Apostolic Writings. The Messianic Jewish Rabbi expounds and applies this Torah in light of the tradition, including the historical enrichment of the biblical heritage within the life of the community. For a Messianic Jewish Rabbi, his or her relationship to our sacred tradition and our community is approached through the person, work, and teaching of Yeshua our Rabbi and is informed by the teaching of the historic and universal Body of Messiah. Second, Messianic Jewish Rabbis are custodians “of Israel’s revelation and holy tradition.” They stand at the nexus between the continuous tradition of the past and the communities of the present. They are the link mediating the heritage of the past to living communities today. For the Messianic Jewish rabbinate, the twenty-four books of the Hebrew Bible and the Apostolic Writings constitute God’s special revelation to Israel. Israel’s holy tradition consists of the historic tradition of rabbinic interpretation and halakhic discourse. As custodians “of Israel’s revelation and holy tradition,” it is incumbent upon all Messianic Jewish Rabbis to attain Hebrew literacy, i.e., the ability to read and teach our texts, including the Siddur, with comprehension. Attainment of competence in Modern Hebrew
MJRC Standards of Observance 10 1.3 The Messianic is also commended as it exhibits the concern of Messainic Jewish Rabbis for the State of Jewish Rabbi: Israel and the ability of the Messianic Jewish Rabbinate to interact with this significant Decisions & center of Jewish life. Basic competence in Aramaic and Greek is also commended. Commentary Third, central to the vocation of Messianic Jewish Rabbis is the role of teaching “Israel continued the ways of God.” Their vocation is not merely exercised within the Messianic Jewish
community but also extends to all Israel. Messianic Jewish Rabbis should call all Jewish people to deeper faithfulness to their covenantal responsibilities as Jews through the mitzvot and to clear and ongoing commitment to Messiah Yeshua. Messianic Jewish Rabbis should not regard the calling of teaching Israel the ways of God lightly. Assisting all Jews in life-cycle rituals or in the performance of any mitzvah is an opportunity to help another Jew fulfill his covenantal responsibilities and thus live in greater accordance with God’s ways. In doing so, Messianic Jewish Rabbis model and teach Messiah’s mandate to call all Jewish people back to greater covenantal faithfulness (Matthew 15:24). Fourth, Messianic Jewish Rabbis are called to serve for the Messianic Jewish community as exemplars of the tradition they have received. The Tanakh, the Apostolic Writings, and rabbinic literature are filled with examples of people learning the ways of God not only through verbal teaching but also through their actions. Messianic Jewish Rabbis should be attentive to the fact that their modeling of the tradition cannot be undertaken apart from the work of God’s Spirit (Numbers 27:18; Deuteronomy 34:9; Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 2:11–12). They should seek to model “this tradition for the members of the Messianic Jewish community in a manner imbued with the Spirit of God.” It is important to note that this definition is not meant to define how a Messianic Jewish Rabbi should spend the majority of his or her time, nor suggest that the essential and universal rabbinical role defined here captures the most important functions that every rabbi must fulfill. In fact, many, if not most, of our rabbis will continue to focus the majority of their time and energy in their roles as spiritual leaders for our congregations, administering our communal organizations, serving as chaplains, teaching in our educational institutions or serving bi-vocationally.
1.3.2 In the context of congregational life, the senior rabbi appointed by that community serves among them as their Mara d’Atra, i.e., mentor, guide, and authority in matters of religious practice and teaching, encouraging growth and unity that express the life of the Spirit of God. The MJRC affirms the wisdom of traditional Jewish practice of deferring to the senior rabbi appointed by that community to serve as their “mentor, guide and authority in matters of religious practice and teaching.” This role, known in Aramaic as Mara d’Atra (literally “Master of the Place”) is based on tannaitic precedent (m. Avot 1:6; b. Chulin 116a) and is affirmed by the later Amoraim and Geonim (e.g., b. Shabbat 19b, 46a; b. Eruvin 94a). The importance of the Mara d’Atra in local synagogue life continues to be affirmed in the Conservative or Masorti and Orthodox communities. The Mara d’Atra is appointed to serve his or her community and provide for them in all areas of life. The Mara d’Atra should encourage personal and spiritual growth among the members of the community, guiding them to deeper fidelity to the Torah and Messiah Yeshua. This point is particularly important given that the Mara d’Atra is responsible for the spiritual care and leadership of the community (Hebrews 13:17). While the responsibility and authority of the Mara d’Atra are great in a local synagogue, he or she
MJRC Standards of Observance 11 1.3 The Messianic is not immune from criticism if his or her decisions are made in error or in opposition Jewish Rabbi: to explicit biblical commands (see the comments of Rabbi Menachem Meiri and Rabbi Decisions & Yom Tov ben Avraham Asevilli, i.e., the Ritva, to b. Eruvin 94a). Commentary The appointment of a Mara d’Atra is important for each local community in that continued it establishes clearly from whom members of that community should seek definitive guidance in matters of religious practice and teaching. In communities of which several ordained rabbis are members or appointed to serve in rabbinical roles in the community, the adoption of the tradition of the Mara d’Atra clarifies lines of authority among them and for the community. 1.3.3 In concert with the example of Messiah Yeshua and the teaching of scripture concerning the leadership roles of men and women, we affirm the ordination of women as Messianic Jewish Rabbis. In issuing this standard, the MJRC welcomes women to use their God-given spiritual gifts in our community as leaders, rabbis, and teachers. Scripture contains a number of examples of women who hold significant roles in leading and shaping the life of the people of Israel and the early community of Yeshua’s followers – Miriam, Deborah, Huldah, Esther, Junia (Romans 16:7), and Phoebe (Romans 16:1) to name a few. Scripture often describes these women as having significant positions of leadership within the community: judges, prophets, deacons, apostles, etc. We regard these women leaders in the Tanach and Apostolic Writings as models rather than as exceptional cases reflecting communal disorder or the lack of men of sufficient caliber to serve as leaders in the community. In the case of Deborah, the book of Judges describes her as both prophet and judge, roles which Jewish tradition understands as central to the position of rabbi (Judges 4:4). Traditional interpretation of Deborah’s work as judge views her as a paradigm of the role a woman can have in Jewish religious life (see the Tosafot in b. Gittin 88b; b. Baba Kamma 15a; b. Nida 50a; cf. Sefer haChinuch 158). According to these opinions, a wise woman (Ishah Hachamah) can teach and instruct, and a community may accept such a woman as its spiritual and halakhic guide, which are central communal roles of a rabbi. In addition to the cases where women are explicitly named, scripture may testify to women serving in leadership roles where groups of leaders are mentioned and scripture does not specify that the group only consists of men. In both ancient Greek and Hebrew, mixed groups of men and women are described with nouns, pronouns, and verbal suffixes that are marked as masculine (e.g., benei Yisrael = “children of Israel,” not “sons of Israel”). Given Paul’s reference to specific women serving as apostles and deacons (e.g., Romans 16:1, 7), it may well be the case that when Paul speaks of broad categories of assembly leadership in other letters written by him that those lists include both men and women (1 Corinthians 12:28; Philippians 1:1; Ephesians 2:20; 4:11). Additionally, Messiah Yeshua himself elevated the status of women in a highly patriarchal Greco-Roman culture. For example, he transgressed social boundaries by talking with the Samaritan woman at the well about theology, worship, infidelity, and eternal life (John 4). He also welcomed women into his circle of students and friends. These women were the last at the cross (Mark 15:40–47). They were the first at his tomb and first to bear witness to his resurrection, the very substance of the besorah (e.g., Matthew 28:8–10). Messiah Yeshua’s first disciples continued this tradition of
MJRC Standards of Observance 12 1.3 The Messianic transgressing the dominant cultural norms of their day by elevating the status of women Jewish Rabbi: in their communities. Paul also makes no distinction between spiritual gifts given to men Decisions & and women (1 Corinthians 12:1–31). In fact, the outpouring of the Spirit recorded in Commentary Acts 2:17–18 (quoting Joel 2:28–32) includes both men and women exercising spiritual continued gifts (in particular, prophecy) in partnership and equality in God’s kingdom. We recognize that there are passages in the letters of Paul that historically have been interpreted to restrict women’s participation in teaching and communal leadership in settings involving men (1 Corinthians 14:26–35 and 1 Timothy 2:11–15). The broader trajectory of Scripture regarding women, the examples from the Pauline epistles of women functioning in leadership roles (including teaching) noted earlier, and Paul’s own teaching on the equality of spiritual gifts complicate such a reading. In the case of 1 Corinthians 14:34, we understand the specific injunction to be made to women who are in the position of learners not teachers and concerns their talking (lalein) disruptively while someone else is instructing the congregation. In the case of 1 Timothy 2:12, there is good support for understanding the restriction as being against women who domineer or usurp (authetein) proper authority (see Philip B. Payne, Man and Woman, One in Christ, 291–444). In this regard, the restriction is not against women exercising authority or teaching per se but in exercising authority in such a way as to usurp appropriately ordained or designated authority. We make this decision to affirm the ordination of women because of the teaching of Scripture and tradition regarding this matter. Nevertheless, it is important to note that we are not alone in our affirmation of the ordination of women. There is in fact a great transition in the wider Jewish world to welcoming women to serve the community as rabbis (as well as women being ordained as ministers and serving in pastoral roles in a number of Protestant denominations). There are rare cases of women serving in rabbinical roles before the 20th century. For instance, in the 17th century Asenath Barzani served as a rabbi among the Kurds. In the 19th century, Hannah Rachel Verbermacher was a female Hasidic rebbe in Ludmir. The first formally ordained woman was Regina Jonas in Germany in 1935. In America, major streams of liberal Judaism have followed suit: Reform (1972), Reconstructionist (1974), Renewal (1981), Conservative (1985), and Humanist (1999). In general, the various streams of Orthodoxy have not embraced women’s ordination. Some leading figures and institutions in Modern Orthodoxy such as Rabbi Avi Weiss in America and the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem have founded rabbinical training programs in recent years that either include women or are specifically geared towards women. Rabba Sara Hurwitz was ordained by Rabbi Weiss in 2010. Some leading Orthodox rabbinical figures have issued teshuvot in support of women’s ordination including Rabbi Yoel Bin Nun, Rabbi Dr. Daniel Sperber, and Rabbi Joshua Maroof. Consonant with the standards of the MJRC, we affirm that all Messianic Jewish Rabbis, male or female, should view the observance of the mitzvot as central to their rabbinical vocation. Women who are studying for the rabbinate or ordained as Messianic Jewish Rabbis should voluntarily take upon themselves the obligation to observe time-bound mitzvot from which they have traditionally been exempted (e.g., Shema and Tefillin; m. Kiddushin 1:7; m. Berachot 3:3; see Section 4.3.6.2 “Men, Women, and Basic Practices Related to Prayer” of the MJRC Standards).
MJRC Standards of Observance 13 SECTION TWO Issues of Status
2.0 JEWISH STATUS: o man is an island, entire of itself. should be treated with honor and respect. INTRODUCTION Every man is a piece of the continent, “N Therefore, whenever we in the Messianic a part of the main” (John Donne). The same Jewish movement lay claim to Jewish identity, Who is Jewish? could be said of our movement – we are not or whenever we attribute that identity to one an island, entitled to do exactly as we please of our number, we must take pains to do so without reference to others. We are inter- in a manner that respects the norms of the connected, not only with each other in our wider Jewish world. congregations and in our movement, but also with our people Israel, with Yeshua-believers In a movement like ours, with many from all nations, with all humankind, past, Gentiles who value Jewish life, it would present and future. Therefore, what we do be easy to succumb to the temptation to must be done with due respect for all concerned. assign Jewish identity to whoever wanted to lay claim to it. We must not do so. Because Jews are a shrinking minority, the People do not become Jews on their own issue of who claims Jewish identity and terms, nor on the basis of their avowed on what basis is an especially heated one. spiritual testimonies. Jewish identity is a Although being Jewish in 21st century communal reality that can only be granted America exacts little or no social cost, this by appropriate community representatives, is a recent phenomenon. All of us who are not something one grabs for oneself from Jews have parents, grandparents, or great- the table of available options, or establishes grandparents who endured persecutions, independently through private revelation. deprivations, and devastations simply because they were Jews. And since we are This must not and does not mean that connected not only to our immediate families, Gentiles are to be denied status in our but also to the Jewish people throughout movement, or that such persons should time, when we claim Jewish identity we are regard themselves, or be regarded by others, laying hold of something precious and costly as second class citizens, God forbid. Never- to a people who have suffered millennia for theless, of those who are born Gentile only the privilege of calling themselves Jews. those who have gone through a responsible halakhic conversion are entitled to claim The Jewish people exists today, and will the name “Jew.” Some, who have Jewish exist forever, because God has promised ancestors three or four generations past, that it will do so, and because God is faith- should more properly identify themselves ful to His promise. At the same time, the as persons of Jewish background. primary causality of God is normally active in the world through intermediate causes. For those of us who are Jews, or converts In this case one of the means God has used through a credible communal process, to preserve Israel has been Israel’s concern the definition provided in our standards for a national consensus on who is and is is one the Jewish world can appreciate as not a Jew. As a divine instrument employed being respectful of the wider community at for a holy end, this concern – and the whose table we are now claiming our place. discussion and decisions it has produced –
MJRC Standards of Observance 14 2.1 JEWISH STATUS: 2.1 Following the consensus of Jewish tradition, we recognize as a Jew anyone DECISION & who is born of a Jewish mother or who is a convert to Judaism. COMMENTARY We also recognize as a Jew anyone who is born of a Jewish father and a non-Jewish mother if that person has undertaken public and formal acts of identification with the Jewish faith and people. In 1947 the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR) of the Reform movement affirmed in principle the traditional understanding that children born of a Jewish father and a non-Jewish mother required conversion to be considered Jews. However, they also ruled that the conversion need not be a formal event involving mikveh and beit din: “With regard to infants, the declaration of the parents to raise them as Jews shall be deemed sufficient for conversion.” In practice, therefore, the children were accepted as Jews if the parents raised them as Jews, though the language of “conversion” was retained as a link to the traditional understanding. This link enabled them to present their approach as application of the Jewish consensus in new circumstances rather than as a radical innovation. In 1968 the Reconstructionist movement adopted the same practice as Reform, but eliminated any reference to the child’s “conversion”: “the Reconstructionist Movement and its affiliated institutions will consider these children Jews if the parents have committed themselves to rear their children as Jews, by providing circumcision for boys, Jewish education for boys and girls, and if the children fulfill the requirements of bar and bat mitzvah or confirmation.” This decision of the Reconstructionists did not elevate patrilineal descent to the same level as matrilineal descent as the basis for determining Jewish status, since the conditional quality of the child’s Jewish status only applied to those born of non-Jewish mothers, whereas the children of Jewish mothers and non- Jewish fathers were accepted as Jews without condition. In 1983 the Reform movement abandoned its attempt to present its approach as a mere application of a historical Jewish consensus. Not only did it drop the language of “conversion” in reference to the children of Jewish fathers and non-Jewish mothers, it took the momentous step of placing matrilineal and patrilineal descent on the same level. The same conditional quality of Jewish status would now apply to the children of Jewish mothers and non-Jewish fathers: “This leads us to the conclusion that the same requirements must be applied to establish the status of a child of a mixed marriage, regardless of whether the mother or the father is Jewish.” Like the Reconstructionist and Reform movements, we in the MJRC accept patrilineal descent as sufficient for Jewish status if it is accompanied by appropriate actions. According to the Reconstructionists, those actions include the following: “if the parents have committed themselves to rear their children as Jews, by providing circumcision for boys, Jewish education for boys and girls, and if the children fulfill the requirements of bar and bat mitzvah or confirmation.” The Reform movement speaks in general of “appropriate and timely public and formal acts of identification with the Jewish faith and people,” and then provides specific examples of what it has in mind: “mitzvot leading toward a positive and exclusive Jewish identity will include entry into the covenant [i.e., circumcision], acquisition of a Hebrew name, Torah study, bar/bat mitzvah, and Kabbalat Torah (Confirmation).” Thus, patrilineal descent is not sufficient in itself to establish Jewish status. Such descent must be accompanied by public and formal acts of commitment to the Jewish faith and the Jewish people if it is to confer
MJRC Standards of Observance 15 2.1 Jewish Status: upon a person the privileges and obligations inherent in being a Jew. Decision & The Reform ruling also addresses another case that is especially relevant in our Commentary circumstances, namely, the situation where an adult born of a Jewish father and a continued non-Jewish mother reclaims his or her Jewish inheritance: “For those beyond childhood claiming Jewish identity, other public acts or declarations may be added or substituted after consultation with their rabbi.” Nevertheless, we in the MJRC are not entirely in accord with the Reform movement’s approach to Jewish status. In contrast to the Reform movement, we in the MJRC do not treat patrilineal and matrilineal descent in an equivalent manner. This would lead to a narrowing of the traditional reckoning of Jewish status rather than its broadening. One could conceive of cases where Orthodox and Conservative authorities would accept someone’s Jewish status whereas Reform authorities would deny it. As Messianic Jews, we should never find ourselves in a situation where we deny Jewish status to those accepted as Jews by most in the wider Jewish community. The Reform decision also departs dramatically from the historical Jewish consensus regarding the sufficiency of matrilineal descent for determining Jewish status. In this matter we see no good reason for such a radical departure.
2.2 KOHEN AND 2.2 Following the consensus of Jewish tradition, we recognize as a Kohen (Priest) LEVI: DECISION AND a man who is born to a father who is a Kohen and a mother who is herself born to COMMENTARY a Jewish mother. Similarly, we recognize as a Levi (Levite) a man who is born of a father who is a Levi and a mother who either is herself born to a Jewish mother or is a convert to Judaism. The Torah very clearly defines priestly status based on patrilineal descent from Aaron, who was himself a descendent of Levi (e.g., Exodus 4:4; 28:1). Similarly, the tribe of Levi holds a special status within the Jewish people and has a special responsibility for the care of the Tabernacle and later the Temple and its accoutrements (Numbers 3:12; 1:50). According to Jewish tradition the status of an individual as a Levi is determined by their birth to a father who is himself a Levi and a mother who is born to Jewish parents or who is a convert to Judaism. Concern for the identification of proper priestly lineage continues to be an issue outside of the Torah in later biblical materials (see Nehemiah 7:63–65) as well as in the Mishnah and later halakhic literature (e.g., m. Ketubot 2:7–8; Tur even ha-ezer 6:3; Isurei Biah 19:17) The Apostolic Writings also reflect a concern for a person’s status as a Kohen, a Levi, or a general member of the Jewish people (Yisra’el). Paul describes himself as a member of the tribe of Benjamin by birth (Philippians 3:5). At the beginning of Luke, John the Immerser’s father, Zechariah, is described as a priest belonging to the priestly order (mishmerah) of Abijah. His wife, Elizabeth, is similarly described as the daughter of a priest, a bat Kohen (Luke 1:5). In doing so, Luke designates the herald of Yeshua as himself a priest. The writer of Hebrews also describes Yeshua as a Kohen, albeit of a different order than the Aaronic priesthood (see Hebrews 5:1–10). Kohanim are consecrated for priestly service in the Tabernacle and later the Temple according to the Torah (e.g., Exodus 29:1). The Torah itself reflects a strong concern for maintaining the sanctity of the Kehuna (priesthood) and hence enumerates a number of restrictive commands to ensure the ritual purity of Kohanim (e.g., Leviticus 21;
MJRC Standards of Observance 16 2.2 Kohen and Levi: Numbers 18). This act of delineating the purity requirements of the Kohanim (and by Decision & extension the Levi’im) proceeds out of a desire to ensure the sanctity of the Temple and Commentary emphasizes its importance in the life and devotion of the Jewish people. As the Rambam continued notes, “In order to raise the estimation of the Temple, those who ministered therein received great honor; and the Priests and the Levites were therefore distinguished from the rest” (Moreh Nevuchim III.24). Yeshua and the early followers of Yeshua exhibited a similar concern for the sanctity of the Temple. Yeshua himself regularly went up to Jerusalem on pilgrimage for the festivals (e.g., John 10:22). After Yeshua’s ascension, Kefa and John continued to go to the Temple to participate in prayers services held in conjunction with the sacrificial service (Acts 3:1). Paul exhibited a similar regard for the sanctity of the Temple and purified himself in order to enter the Temple and to participate in its sacrificial service (Acts 21:26). The MJRC’s concern for ensuring proper identification of who is and who is not a Kohen or a Levi proceeds out of a concern for fidelity to Scripture and the weight of Jewish tradition as well as for ensuring the sanctity of the Temple and its role in Jewish life. As such, we have adopted a stricter position regarding maternal status in determining who is a Kohen or Levi than we do in determining Jewish status (see 2.1). Similarly, this definition does not reflect an egalitarian position regarding who is a Kohen or a Levi and recognizes only men as having the full and unambiguous status of a Kohen or a Levi. As such, the MJRC holds that the daughter of a Kohen (a bat Kohen) or a Levi (a bat Levi) does not confer the halakhic status of a Kohen or a Levi to her children. In making this ruling, the MJRC does not address the question of what functions a female from a Kohen or Levi family could perform but only determines that she does not confer the halakhic status of a Kohen or a Levi to her children. Whether a child is a Kohen or a Levi is a status only conferred by the child’s father if he is a Kohen or a Levi himself.
2.3 JEWS, GENTILES, he MJRC understands messianic Jewish community and the Christian & MESSIANIC JEWISH T Jewish congregations to be Churches is the crucial sign that these CONGREGATIONS: synagogues that honor Yeshua as Messiah Churches are now part of an expanded INTRODUCTION and find in Him the embodiment and People of God and can look to Israel’s fullness of Judaism. They differ from history as in a sense their own. However, Christian churches in that full membership this sign only has validity insofar as the What is a Messianic is not based solely on a confession of Messianic Jewish congregation is in fact Jewish Congregation? faith (and its sacramental enactment in participating in and expressing the life of baptism) but also entails commitment to, the Jewish people as a whole. identification with, and participation in This means that the Messianic ekklesia the Jewish people and its distinctive way of consists not only of individual Jews life embodied in the Torah. The Messianic and Gentiles, but also of Jewish and Jewish congregation thus sees itself as part Gentile social environments. For a social of a wider Jewish community. environment to be Jewish, it must operate according to patterns and principles that Because of its faith in Messiah Yeshua it is express the Jewish communal experience also joined to the Churches of the Nations around the world and through the – or, rather, those Churches are joined to centuries. Among such patterns is a it, inasmuch as they are attached to the nation of Israel through union with Israel’s clear definition of those practices that Messiah. The relationship of love and express the distinctive character of Jewish cooperative action between the Messianic identity, and which are only appropriately
MJRC Standards of Observance 17 2.3 Jews, Gentiles, undertaken by those who are Jewish. For By establishing a responsible conversion & Messianic Jewish a social environment to be Jewish, it must process, the MJRC has demonstrated its Congregations also consist largely of Jewish members belief that the Jew-Gentile boundary which continued who bear responsibility for determining its runs through the midst of the Messianic distinctive communal character. Jewish congregation must be permeable Given the pluralistic character of Western rather than hermetically sealed. But the society; the level of assimilation of many establishing of a conversion process like- contemporary Jews; the intimate bond wise demonstrates the MJRC’s conviction that joins Messianic Jews with Gentile that the boundary exists. To be real, this Christians; the appreciation many boundary must find concrete expression in Christians have for Judaism; and the congregational life. However, it should not particular history of the Messianic Jewish be so conspicuous that it undermines the movement, we recognize that Messianic love and mutual respect in the Spirit that Jewish congregations – especially in should predominate in any community the Diaspora – will always involve the rooted in Messiah Yeshua. participation of non-Jews. Nevertheless, The following decisions seek to uphold a clear distinction must exist within the such a boundary while honoring both Messianic Jewish community between Jews, our history as a movement and the many who are themselves fully part of the Jewish Gentiles who dedicate their lives to people, and those who are not fully part of promote our movement’s success. that people but participate actively in its life.
Distinctive Jewish here are many Jewish practices in which the Jewish identity of the one Practices Within a T which may suitably be adopted engaged in the practice is integral to the Messianic Jewish by non-Jews in a way that honors the practice itself. There are two types of such Congregation Jewish people and tradition. Resting on the distinctive Jewish practice that will be Seventh day and avoiding the consumption addressed here: (1) Fundamental rites of of pork products are illustrations of such passage; and (2) Ritual privileges which practices. The MJRC does not believe identify the person participating in them that Gentiles are required to observe these as a member of the people of Israel and a practices, nor do we see Messianic Judaism recipient of the Torah. as a movement charged with promoting We need to consider thoughtfully all of such practices for Gentiles. Nevertheless, these various practices and rules, in order to we also recognize that such customs are fashion a communal set of standards that permissible, and – when undertaken with will enable our congregations to flourish the right motives and reasons – may even as Jewish social environments dedicated to be commendable. Messiah Yeshua. In contrast, there are other Jewish practices
2.3 JEWS, GENTILES, 2.3.1 It is our conviction that the direction of Messianic Jewish congregations & MESSIANIC JEWISH should be the responsibility of Jews alone. Criteria for becoming a member or a CONGREGATIONS: leader in a Messianic Jewish congregation should take account of this conviction. DECISIONS & COMMENTARY 2.3.2 Rites of Passage. Fundamental Jewish rites of passage are reserved for Jews. Such rites of passage include:
MJRC Standards of Observance 18 2.3 Congregations: • B’rit Milah on the eighth day (ritual circumcision), and Simchat Bat Brit, as Decisions & public events initiating ritually the child into the covenant Commentary • Pidyon HaBen (redemption of the first-born) continued • Bar/Bat Mitzvah (we may have a parallel rite of passage for children of Gentile members; however, we will use another name to refer to it)
• Union of marriage solemnized through the traditional rites of Jewish marriage (e.g., Huppah, Ketubah, Sheva Berachot). These may be employed in the case of intermarriage, but not in the marriage of two Gentiles (we may have a parallel marriage rite for Gentile members that includes certain elements from the Jewish rite)
2.3.3 Ritual Privileges.
2.3.3.1 Privileges Associated with Full Membership in a Jewish Community.
Jewish ritual privileges associated with full membership in a Jewish community are limited to Jews. This includes wearing tallit or tefillin; being counted in a minyan; serving as Shaliach Tzibur; reciting a mitzvah berachah; or receiving a Torah aliyah.
However, Gentiles may participate in certain rituals: reciting a mitzvah berachah with the congregation or with Jewish members of their family, receiving a Torah aliyah when done jointly with a Jewish member of their family, and participating in the Torah service as described below. Gentiles may also read publicly from the Besorah and recite publicly English prayers that do not involve the mitzvah berachah and do not refer to the election of Israel or the gift of the Torah to Israel.
2.3.3.2 Torah Aliyot.
Messianic Jews should honor the traditional custom of reserving for Jews Torah aliyot that involve identifying oneself as a direct recipient of the Torah (such as reading from the Torah and reciting the berachah for the gift of the Torah). Nevertheless, it is essential that we also acknowledge that the redemptive work of Yeshua and the sanctifying power of the Spirit bring Christians into a wider orbit around the Torah even as they bring them into the expanded multi- national commonwealth of Israel. This acknowledgement should be reflected in Messianic Jewish practice. As an appropriate expression of this reality, we affirm the right of Christians to honor the Sefer Torah by means of physical contact. At the same time, certain ritual roles occur in liturgical contexts that so express the Torah’s intimate bond with the Jewish people that they should not normally be undertaken by Christians.
Non-Jews may kiss the Torah as it passes in procession, and they may dance with the Torah on Simchat Torah if the entire congregation is doing so. They may also carry the Torah in the Torah procession. Lifting the Torah (hagbah) and dressing the Torah (gelilah) should normally be restricted to Jews – not because contact is forbidden, but because of the role these ritual acts play within the wider framework of the liturgy. According to Jewish custom, non-Jews are not permitted direct contact with a Sefer Torah, as an expression of the unique bond between Israel and the Torah. The Torah
MJRC Standards of Observance 19 2.3 Congregations: is Israel’s Ketubah with Hashem, and only the people of Israel are responsible for the Decisions & fulfillment of all its mitzvot. Thus, in traditional Jewish settings non-Jews may not lift Commentary the Torah, carry the Torah, or dance with the Torah. continued
MJRC Standards of Observance 20 SECTION THREE Kashrut
3.0 KASHRUT: he first commandment given to she is a Jew, and that God is really God. And INTRODUCTION T humankind was about food: “And when we fail to eat like Jews, we weaken the Lord God commanded the man, say- our awareness that we are part of a holy Why keep kosher? ing, ‘You may freely eat of every tree of the people, and that the God who established a garden; but of the tree of the knowledge covenant with us has rights over our lives. of good and evil you shall not eat, for in Keeping kosher is also about honoring the the day that you eat of it you shall die’” very nature of being Jews, “a people that (Genesis 2:16-17). Why this command- dwells apart, that shall not be numbered ment? Why not the command to till the with the nations.” Every time Jews eat earth and subdue it? Why not some other kosher, they remind themselves, their command? Why is this one the very first, children, and all around them that they are and therefore most prominent? Jews. By eating kosher we are meant not Perhaps the reason is that there is nothing only to stand apart from the other nations, more personal, nothing which we are so but to stand together with each other – inclined to think of as nobody’s business eating kosher is a means of group identity but our own, as the question of what we and cohesion. And wherever that practice choose to put in our mouths. Which of is abandoned, group identity and cohesion us has not grown irritated with someone suffers. But something far more crucial is who says to us, “Do you think you should compromised as well – the honor of God. eat that?” We feel intruded upon. And Maybe we should paraphrase Ahad Ha’am for many of us, even when the doctor here: “It was not the Jews who kept kosher, tries to regulate our diet, we feel invaded, it was kashrut that kept the Jews.” diminished, demoralized. When we eat the way Jews eat, we honor So, the command not to eat of the tree of God – we tell God, ourselves, and all who knowledge of good and evil was a relation- observe us, that Hashem is our God and ship test in the Garden. Would Adam and we are Hashem’s people. And isn’t that a Chava respect God’s right to regulate their good thing? Again, it’s all about relationship. lives, even to the point of restricting their It’s easy to say that we love God. But Yeshua diet? They failed the test – and most of us reminds us that words are not enough – Jews do as well, three times a day, every day. they never are. “If you love me, you will Kashrut is not primarily about food – it is keep my commandments” (John 14:15). all about relationship. Every time a religious And that applies also, even first, to food. Jew eats a kosher meal, she is reminded that
3.1 KASHRUT: 3.1 Fundamental Requirements. DECISIONS & 3.1.1 All pork products, shellfish, and food containing their elements (e.g., lard) COMMENTARY are to be avoided. All fruits, grains and vegetables are kosher. Fish with fins and scales are also kosher. These basic laws of kashrut are first enjoined in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14.
MJRC Standards of Observance 21 3.1 Kashrut: However, the distinction between animals that are tahor (ritually pure) and those that Decisions & are not tahor is already found in the story of Noah (Genesis 7:2). While Noah and his Commentary family are permitted to eat all animals (Genesis 9:3), only those that are tahor may be continued offered as sacrifices (Genesis 8:20). As a priestly people set apart for Hashem from all the nations of the world, Israel is summoned to limit the animals it consumes so that its table may be analogous to the temple altar. While many have argued that these dietary laws have hygienic value, the Torah itself provides a different rationale: “You shall be holy, for I am holy” (Leviticus 11:44; see Deuteronomy 14:2). Peter’s vision in Acts 10 suggests that the nations of the world are now being called to share in Israel’s holiness, without losing their character as nations distinct from Israel. Therefore, they may now become holy, like Israel, without adopting Israel’s dietary regimen. However, Acts 10 does not imply that Israel may fulfill its own particular priestly calling apart from that regimen.
3.1.2 Following Conservative Halakhah, we consider swordfish and sturgeon acceptable as part of our basic practice. Meats (except from the hind quarters) from cattle, lamb, goat, or deer, and from most common fowl (e.g., chicken, turkey, goose, duck) may all be eaten. The traditional dispute over swordfish and sturgeon concerns the status of their scales. According to Ramban, the Torah refers only to scales that can be detached from the skin of the fish. The scales of the swordfish and sturgeon can be removed from the skin, but only with difficulty. Thus, Orthodox authorities generally regard these fish as non-kosher, whereas the Conservative movement has ruled them kosher. This dispute also affects the kashrut of caviar, which is derived from sturgeon. On the prohibition of meat from the hind quarters of permitted four-legged animals, see decision 3.3.3.
3.2 Gelatin, Cheese, Wine.
3.2.1 For our basic practice we will adopt the standards of the Conservative Movement that treat all gelatin and cheese as acceptable. “Some substances that originate in animal sources undergo such complete change as a result of chemical treatment that they can no longer be regarded as ‘meat’ products. This is the case with both gelatin and rennet, which Conservative authorities have ruled are kosher.” (S. Dresner, Keeping Kosher [United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, 2000], 63.)
3.2.2 All wines or other alcoholic beverages are acceptable. In the case of Jewish ceremonies only kosher wine or grape juice should be used. “When wine is used for the fulfillment of a mitzvah, such as circumcision, weddings, kiddush, and havdalah, it is proper to use wine that is certified kosher” (Dresner,64 ). The fact that the wine was produced by Jews and the production process supervised by Jewish religious authorities adds to the sacred character of the occasion.
3.3 Shechitah and Removal of Blood.
3.3.1 The most basic Biblical dietary law, addressed not only to Israel but also to
MJRC Standards of Observance 22 3.3 Kashrut: the nations of the world in Noah, involves avoiding the eating of blood (foods that Decisions & are cooked in or with blood). Concern to guard this core dietary law led to the Commentary institution of shechitah – the Jewish ritual slaughter of animals (which removes the continued vast majority of the blood) – and the special preparation of meat (which removes the remainder). Therefore, ideally it is recommended that only meat slaughtered and packaged under reliable kosher supervision be purchased. The prohibition of ingesting blood, enjoined on all humanity in Genesis 9:4 and confirmed in Acts 15:20, 29; 21:25, is given when human beings are first permitted to eat meat (Genesis 9:3). Permission to eat meat is a concession to the violence that precipitated the flood (Genesis 6:11, 13). The prohibition of eating blood, the one universal dietary restriction, immediately precedes the prohibition of murder (Genesis 9:5-6) – the shedding of human blood. Thus, this universal dietary law expresses the biblical value of reverence for life. It is striking that all carnivorous animals are ritually impure, according to Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14. The nations of the world are forbidden to eat the blood of animals, but Israel must go a step further – it must avoid even the meat of animals that consume the blood of other animals. In this way the value of reverence for life is doubly reinforced. Because it is not specifically a Jewish prohibition but a universal one, the commandment not to eat blood (along with many other universal commandments) is not what we are calling here a “basic practice.” It is assumed that all Yeshua-believers should desire to keep this commandment and thus, within reasonable limits, will avoid consuming blood. The prohibition against eating blood is elucidated in Ezekiel 33:25, where the prophet speaks these words of condemnation on behalf of Hashem: “You eat with the blood” (which probably means, “You eat meat with the blood in it”). Thus, Jews must purge meat of blood to the extent that this can be reasonably accomplished. This is done through kosher slaughter and additional measures. While shechitah refers specifically to the kosher slaughtering of an animal, in the above decision the term is used more broadly to cover both the kosher slaughtering (done by a shochet) and the processing and preparation of the meat (done by a butcher). The latter is technically called porging, and involves (1) removal of residual blood remaining after shechitah; (2) removal of fats prohibited by the Torah (Leviticus 3:17); and (3) removal of the sciatic nerve, as required by Genesis 32:33 (see below). Given the evident basis of these practices in the Written Torah, the institution of shechitah should be honored among us as Messianic Jews, and if at all feasible we should seek to purchase meat slaughtered and packaged under reliable kosher supervision. 3.3.2 Most meat labeled kosher has been salted to remove the blood. One should investigate to see if this is the case with kosher meat one has purchased. If it is not the case, one should remove the blood oneself through salting or broiling. For a detailed description of the process of salting and boiling, see Klein, 350-57. Liver requires broiling because of the preponderance of blood in it. “Because it contains an excessive amount of blood, liver can be koshered only by broiling, and should not be soaked. Even if liver is to be cooked in some other way, it must first be broiled.” (Dresner, 62)
3.3.3 While the purchase of meat slaughtered and butchered under reliable kosher supervision is highly recommended, given the difficulty in many places of
MJRC Standards of Observance 23 3.3 Kashrut: obtaining kosher meat our basic practice will not involve eating only such meat. Decisions & It will involve urging that we avoid meat from the hind quarters of permitted four- Commentary legged animals (a practice rooted in Jacob’s injury in Genesis 32). continued Cuts that are acceptable according to our basic practice include Chuck, Rib and Ribeye, Shank and Brisket, Skirt and Flank. Also permitted are London Broil (when from the shoulder), and Cubed Steak and Ground Beef (when they do not contain elements from the hindquarters).
Cuts that are to be avoided include Top Loin (Strip or Shell) Steak, T-Bone, Porterhouse, Tenderloin, Sirloin, Tri-Tip, and Round. (London Broil from the Bottom or Top Rounds are likewise to be avoided.) The angel who wrestled with Jacob “wrenched Jacob’s hip at its socket” (Genesis 32:26). The Torah tells us that this event is remembered by Jacob’s descendants through a dietary restriction: “That is why the children of Israel to this day do not eat the thigh muscle that is on the socket of the hip, since Jacob’s hip socket was wrenched at the thigh muscle” (Genesis 32:33). This dietary restriction remains a Jewish practice, and involves the removal of the sciatic nerve by a kosher butcher (m. Chullin 7:1-6). Since this procedure is very difficult even for a trained kosher butcher, it is customary in the diaspora to set aside the hindquarters and sell them to non-Jews. If it is not feasible to obtain kosher meat or practice vegetarianism, and if we purchase meat of permitted animals from another source, our basic practice – in accordance with Genesis 32:33 – entails avoiding meat from the hindquarters.
3.4 Separating Meat and Dairy.
Our basic practice involves avoiding the consumption of meat products (including fowl) and obvious dairy products (or foods containing obvious dairy products) together in a given meal. Meat may be eaten after eating obvious dairy foods without any time interval, though they should not be present together at the same table. After eating a meat meal, the minimum time interval before eating obvious dairy products should be one hour.
By “obvious dairy products,” we mean milk and milk products such as cheese, butter, yogurt, and ice cream. Some products normally considered “nondairy” (some nondairy creamers, margarine, dessert toppings) actually contain dairy derivatives, and so are technically not pareve (containing neither dairy nor meat). Such products are not included in “obvious dairy products.” The separation of meat and dairy products is associated with the Torah’s prohibition of eating a kid cooked in its mother’s milk (Exodus 23:19; 34:26; Deuteronomy 14:21). The Mishnah states: “No flesh may be cooked with milk save the flesh of fish and locusts; and it is forbidden to serve it up together with cheese upon the table excepting the flesh of fish and locusts” (m. Chullin8:1 ). While such separation is not obviously implicit in the biblical text, it should be respected as an ancient fence around the biblical prohibition that is firmly grounded in Jewish tradition and practice. (The sages themselves viewed this as a ruling of the Written Torah.) The separation of meat and dairy products is also rich in symbolic significance. As noted above (5.3.1), permission to eat meat is a concession to the violence that precipitated the flood. In the creation narrative human beings are assigned an exclusively vegetarian
MJRC Standards of Observance 24 3.4 Kashrut: diet (Genesis 1:29). While the laws of kashrut do not impose a return to that pristine Decisions & regimen, their fundamental concern is the limitation of meat consumption. Only certain Commentary animals may be eaten, and even they must be slaughtered and prepared in a certain continued fashion (or they are also excluded). Now we add a further restriction – that even properly slaughtered and prepared meat cannot be consumed with dairy products. This final limitation points us back to the original reason for restricting the consumption of meat: reverence for life. As dairy products symbolize the nurturing of new life, it is fitting that they not be mixed with foods which require the taking of life. The inclusion of fowl in this prohibition is a further rabbinic fence, and is acknowledged as such by the sages (b. Chullin 113a). It was reasonable to group fowl together with beef, lamb, etc., and to distinguish both from fish, as the first two groups are both subject to the laws of shechitah, while fish are not. The inclusion of fowl in the separation of meat and dairy is as established in Jewish tradition as the separation itself, and as such deserves our respect. It also contributes to the primary symbolic significance of the custom, and of the dietary laws as a whole – reverence for life. No particular time limit between eating meat and dairy products is specified in the Talmud. Therefore, a variety of customs developed in Jewish communities around the world. In some places the minimum interval was as long as six hours; in other places it was as short as one hour. In keeping with our principle of establishing a basic practice that is as accessible as possible, we have adopted the most lenient custom as our basic practice.
3.5 Eating in Restaurants.
When eating out, the above standards may be relaxed, but one should continue to avoid all meat (and meat-products) from non-kosher animals (e.g., pig, shellfish). Beyond this basic practice, we commend the eating of non-meat meals when eating in non-kosher facilities. The practice commended here (but not included as basic practice) is taught within the Conservative movement: “If it is necessary to dine in non-kosher facilities, meat and dishes containing meat may not be eaten. Some sanction only the eating of cold foods, such as salads, if the food contains no forbidden ingredients. Others approve eating permitted fish and other foods, even if cooked” (Dresner, 64).
3.6 Medications and Nutritional Supplements.
In keeping with the views of many halakhic authorities, as our basic practice there are no restrictions on medicines and nutritional supplements derived from non- kosher animals when consumed in pill/capsule or elixir form. “Beyond the question of medical need, the question is whether we are eating food: swallowing without chewing may not be considered eating, and a foul-tasting substance may not be considered food…Pills that are swallowed whole rather than chewed need not be kosher (since they are not being eaten in the usual way), but pills that are chewed should be kosher. Liquids with a very unpleasant taste need not be kosher, but pleasant tasting liquids should be kosher” (Yehuda Wiesen, Guide to Practical Halacha and Home Ritual for Conservative Jews [2004], 12-13).
MJRC Standards of Observance 25 SECTION FOUR Community Practices
4.0 SHABBAT: habbat is for Jews a constant of life, and it did so because people grew INTRODUCTION S reminder that we are the people up living it. The parents, teachers, and whom the Creator of heaven and earth clergy who understood this best were the Why keep Shabbat? redeemed from slavery in Egypt. If we ones who created an environment in which cannot make room for Shabbat in our busy spirituality was fully and deeply embedded. schedules, we prove that the fact of our They honored the spirituality of chicken slavery has not changed, only its location. dinners, of gefilte fish, of family Bibles [and of Shabbat tables, candles, meals, and Ahad Ha’am reminds us: “It was not the the protected differentness of the day]” Jews that kept the Sabbath, it was the Sabbath (xxxv-xxxvii). that kept the Jews.” It was keeping Shabbat that helped us hold fast to Jewish life and The Torah reminds us that we are to be “a identity amidst the threatening political people that dwells apart, that shall not be and cultural cross-currents of two millennia numbered with the nations” in exile. And as we raise our children in a (Numbers 23:9). Keeping Shabbat is world friendlier to Jews but no less threatening indispensable if that Jewish distinctness to Jewish life, keeping Shabbat becomes even and collective identity is to become real, more critical. Without Shabbat, our children something one can see, hear, taste and may not forget that they are Jews, but are remember as lived experience. While the sure to forget the meaning of being a Jew. rest of the world treats Saturday as a day off, a day to shop, or even a day to catch In Growing Up Religious, Robert Wuthnow up on work, Jews are to treat Saturday as explores how spiritual identity is preserved the holiest of days when we are privileged and passed on from generation to generation. to host the Holy One at our table and sing Speaking of religious practices such as his praises in our gathered families. It is keeping Shabbat he says, “the pursuit of a day where all our creativity is devoted any particular practice (such as Shabbat to Sabbath joys, and to receiving and keeping) is accomplished only at the sacrifice celebrating the life we did not make, but of other possible activities. Growing up have been given by the Holy One. Perhaps religious was a memorable part of people’s you will ask, “What good will keeping childhood because it included...discrete, Shabbat do for me?” That is, of course, the separable activities that took time away wrong question. The question is, “What from other interests, but they were also will not keeping Shabbat do to you?” embedded in social relationships. People Thousands of years of Jewish history supply did them with their mothers and fathers, the answer: “Nothing good.” their grandparents, their siblings, and their friends and fellow congregants... But spiri- Come, keep – and be kept by – the holy tuality also came to be understood as a way Shabbat.
MJRC Standards of Observance 26 4.1 SHABBAT: 4.1.1 Starting/Ending Time. DECISIONS & 4.1.1.1 Shabbat begins and ends according to the times determined and COMMENTARY accepted by the wider Orthodox and Conservative Jewish world. This means that we are accepting the Rabbinic fence around the law, with an earlier time for starting and a later time for ending. According to the Jewish reckoning of time, days begin at night. But when does “night” begin? Jewish tradition recognizes a transitional period between “day” and “night” that is technically neither day nor night. This is the period that commences with the setting of the sun, and concludes with the appearance of the stars (when the evening sky is clear). In Hebrew this period is called beyn hashmashot – the time “between the suns.” Though the status of this transitional part of the day is inherently ambiguous, for halakhic purposes it needs to be regarded as either part of the day that preceded or the night that follows (e.g., the yahrzeit of someone who dies during this period of the day needs to be determined). In setting the beginning and ending times of the Sabbath, Jewish law has traditionally followed a sound halakhic principle: when there is doubt concerning the application of a law that has biblical authority (that is d’oraita), we should follow the stricter of two possible interpretations. In the case of the Sabbath, this means that we should reckon the time “between the suns” as part of the Sabbath both on Friday and on Saturday. Thus, Shabbat begins with the setting of the sun on Friday, and ends with the appearance of the stars on Saturday. Rabbinic tradition provided further protection against violation of Shabbat by adding roughly twenty minutes to the day at the beginning and the end. This addition also derives from a talmudic principle that we should “add from the profane to the holy” (b. Rosh Hashanah 8b-9a), and so fulfills a positive as well as a negative (protective) purpose. Thus, the times listed in Jewish calendars for the beginning of Shabbat are slightly earlier than sunset, and the times listed for the ending of Shabbat are slightly later than nightfall.
4.1.1.2 In keeping with common observance, Shabbat can be extended, but not diminished (we can light candles before Shabbat actually begins during the summer).
4.1.1.3 One should prepare for Shabbat in order to make it special. Food, clothing, and table setting should be special (not just different but at a higher level than usual), and prepared for in advance “You should rejoice in the coming of Shabbat. Imagine how you would put the house in order in honor of the arrival of a dear and distinguished person, all the more so [should you exert yourself] in honor of the Sabbath Queen” (Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 72:7). The Sages interpreted Isaiah 58:13, “You shall honor it [Shabbat],” as meaning that one should wear finer clothing on Shabbat than on weekdays (b. Shabbat113 a).
4.1.2 Candle Lighting.
4.1.2.1 If it is not possible to light candles before Shabbat begins, traditional Halakhah would strictly prohibit lighting the candles at a later time. We respect this traditional halakhic decision, and the honor it shows to the objective temporal boundaries of Shabbat built into the natural order. At the same time, given the symbolic importance Shabbat candle lighting has assumed in modern Jewish family
MJRC Standards of Observance 27 4.1 Shabbat: life, our own basic practice will not prohibit lighting Shabbat candles after Shabbat Decisions & begins by transferring a fire from a candle lit before the beginning of Shabbat. In Commentary this case the original candle should not be extinguished on Shabbat, nor should continued the mitzvah berachah be recited. The custom of lighting Shabbat candles, in order to honor Shabbat and to define the beginning of the holy day within the home, is not a biblical commandment, but is presumed by rabbinic authorities in the Mishnah (m. Shabbat 2:1-7). It is a mitzvah that has been embraced enthusiastically by the Jewish people as a whole, and – like a mezuzah on one’s doorpost – it expresses a family’s fundamental commitment to Judaism. The beginning and ending of Shabbat have both objective and subjective dimensions. The objective dimension results from the earth’s turning on its axis as it orbits the sun. The subjective dimension involves the deliberate acknowledgement of the day’s temporal boundaries by the Jewish people. The importance of the subjective dimension is shown by the fact that one can light candles earlier than the stipulated time, and from that point on one must treat the day as holy. The interdependence of these two dimensions is seen from the traditional principle stated above: Shabbat can be extended, but not diminished (decision 4.1.1.2). We can take from the profane and add to the holy, but we should not take from the holy and add to the profane. Traditional Halakhah prohibits both kindling and transferring a flame on Shabbat. Nevertheless, the two actions are distinguished, as is evident in halakhic rulings concerning the holidays. On a holiday one may transfer but not kindle a flame (Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 98:1, 31). This suggests that the prohibition of transferring a flame may be an extended stringency protecting the special sanctity of Shabbat. At the very least, one may assume that transferring a flame on Shabbat is a less serious violation than kindling a flame. Decision 4.1.2.1 neither encourages nor sanctions transferring a flame on Shabbat. It merely states that observance of the traditional prohibition is not required as part of our basic practice. On the prohibition of kindling a flame on Shabbat, see decision 4.1.6.
4.1.2.2 Between Pesach and Sukkot, it is permissible to light Shabbat candles as much as three hours in advance of the beginning of Shabbat.
4.1.2.3 The berachah recited at the lighting of the candles will be the traditional mitzvah berachah. If one wants to use an additional Messianic berachah, one may do so. Normally at least two candles are lit. It is customary for the woman of the house- hold to officiate, lighting the candles and then reciting the blessing while covering her face with her hands. She then removes her hands, and looks at the candles. If there are no women in the household, or no women are available at the appropriate time to perform the mitzvah, a man may and should light the candles. This practice derives from the combination of two important rules: (1) A blessing associated with a mitzvah should be said before doing the mitzvah, in order to demonstrate that one is consciously acting in obedience to a divine commandment; (2) A fire may not be kindled after Shabbat begins. Since the recitation of the blessing signifies the beginning of Shabbat, the candles could not be lit after the blessing – but the blessing should come first! To show respect for both rules, one covers one’s face while reciting the blessing – as if the candles were not yet lit. (See Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 75:4)
MJRC Standards of Observance 28 4.1 Shabbat: Normally the candles are lit in the room where Shabbat dinner will be served and Decisions & kiddush recited, in order to indicate that the candles were lit in honor of Shabbat Commentary (Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 75:8). continued 4.1.3 Participation in Shabbat Services.
One should participate in a weekly Friday night or Saturday service. Shabbat is a sign of God’s eternal covenant with the people of Israel (Exodus 31:12, 16-17). As such, it is important that Jews gather before God as a community on this day, to honor the covenant and the One who gave it. Jews throughout the centuries have recognized the special importance of gathering on Shabbat for prayer and study. It is noteworthy that one of the earliest Jewish documents attesting this practice is the New Testament (Luke 4:15-16, 31-33; Acts 13:13-15; 15:21).
4.1.4 Kiddush, Havdalah, and the Meals of Shabbat.
4.1.4.1 Friday night meal: The basic practice includes reciting kiddush, hamotzi (over bread), and an abbreviated birkat hamzon (all prayers to be said in Hebrew).
We commend as expanded practice ritual handwashing (netilat yadaim) with its traditional berachah, use of two loaves of bread, salting the bread, recitation of ayshet hayil, blessing of the children, singing of zemirot (special Sabbath songs), full birkat hamazon, and discussion of Torah (divrey Torah).
4.1.4.2 Saturday noon meal: The basic practice includes reciting kiddush, hamotzi (if bread is eaten), and an abbreviated birkat hamazon.
Kiddush at the noon meal is recited over any beverage except water. If the beverage is not wine, then shehakol is substituted for borey peri hagafen.
We commend as expanded practice ritual handwashing (netilat yadaim), singing of zemirot, discussion of Torah (divrey Torah), and the full birkat hamazon..
4.1.4.3 Saturday evening meal: The basic practice includes hamotzi and an abbreviated birkat hamazon.
We commend as expanded practice the singing of zemirot and the full birkat hamazon.
4.1.4.4 The traditional havdalah service should be recited after Shabbat ends. The Talmud sees the recitation of kiddush (literally, “sanctification”) over wine at the beginning of Shabbat as a fulfillment of Exodus 20:8 – “Remember the Sabbath day, to sanctify it” (b. Pesachim 106a). Maimonides applies the verse also to havdalah (Mishneh Torah, Shabbat 29:1). Friday evening kiddush and Saturday evening havdalah serve both as ceremonial declarations (corporate and verbal acts of “remembrance”) of the holiness of the day, and as lines of demarcation, subjectively distinguishing the sacred from the secular. Wine symbolizes and conveys the joy of the Sabbath day. In Judaism, holiness and joy are indissolubly united. On hamotzi and birkat hamazon, see decisions 4.1.4.2 and 4.1.4.3.
MJRC Standards of Observance 29 4.1 Shabbat: According to rabbinic tradition, the ritual washing of hands should precede all meals Decisions & at which bread is eaten. This custom derives from the Torah’s ritual for priests before Commentary offering sacrifice or performing service within the tabernacle/temple continued (Exodus 30:17-21). By extending this practice to all meals outside the temple, Jewish tradition implies that the role of every Jew is priestly and the table of every Jew is a sacred altar. If this is true for all meals, how much more so for the meal that inaugurates Shabbat! The Besorot (Gospels) record a dispute between Yeshua and Pharisaic teachers concerning the practice of hand washing before meals (Matthew 15:1-20; Mark 7:1-23). The dispute had less to do with hand washing itself, and more with the primacy of biblical law over Pharisaic oral tradition, the primacy of basic moral imperatives (such as honoring parents) over ritual minutiae, and the nature of true defilement and purification. It is also important to recognize that ritual hand washing in the first century was a distinctive Pharisaic custom, and not a generally accepted Jewish norm, as it later became. Since Yeshua showed consistent respect for Jewish norms, we cannot assume that he would treat ritual hand washing today as he did in his original disputes with the Pharisees. For more on this topic, see Mark S. Kinzer, Postmissionary Messianic Judaism (Grand Rapids: Brazos Press, 2005).
4.1.5 Practicing one’s occupation.
One ceases from his or her profession, trade, or daily occupation on Shabbat, except in the following occupations: health care workers and care-givers, police, military, emergency personnel, and synagogue personnel who are involved in the synagogue activities of the day.
Accommodations may be made on a case-by-case basis by a bet din handling a conversion. “If you refrain from trampling the Sabbath, from pursuing your own interests on my holy day; if you call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the LORD honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, serving your own interests, or pursuing your own affairs; then you shall take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride upon the heights of the earth” (Isaiah 58:13-14a) Isaac Klein points out the halakhic implications of this text from Isaiah: “The obvious intent of this passage is that one should not pursue his chosen profession, trade, or daily occupation on the Sabbath; the merchant should not go to his store, the manufacturer to his plant, the laborer to his shop, or the professional to his office” 80-81( ). All traditional Jewish authorities recognize exceptions to this rule, and to all Shabbat restrictions, in matters pertaining to the saving or preserving of life (b. Yoma 85a, b. Shabbat 132a). Yeshua highlights this principle, and even appears to extend it beyond maters of life and death to include basic acts of kindness to those in genuine need (Mark 3:1-5). Similarly, the Torah commands priests to perform tasks in the temple on Shabbat that are prohibited to others engaged in secular pursuits (Matthew 12:5). Accordingly, a rabbi serving a congregation on Shabbat is fulfilling a mitzvah rather than performing forbidden work.
MJRC Standards of Observance 30 4.1 Shabbat: 4.1.6 Kindling Fire. Decisions & According to our basic practice, one should not kindle a flame on Shabbat. Halakhic Commentary authorities disagree about whether the use of electrical devices and the combustion continued involved in starting and running an automobile violate this commandment of the Torah. Our basic practice will follow the more lenient interpretation. “You shall kindle no fire throughout your settlements on the Sabbath day” (Exodus 35:3). The kindling of fire, which involves creating a flame, transforming the nature of the material consumed by the flame, and giving off light and heat, serves as a paradigmatic illustration of the sort of creative activity prohibited on Shabbat. It also recalls God’s first act of creation in Genesis 1 – the formation of light. While all Orthodox halakhic authorities prohibit the use of electricity on Shabbat, some see this restriction as a rabbinic extension of the biblical commandment rather than a prohibition carrying the full weight of the Written Torah (see Donin, To Be A Jew, 92). In a groundbreaking responsum issued and adopted in 1950, the Conservative movement accepted the view that the prohibition of electricity on Shabbat carried rabbinic and not Scriptural authority. As such, it was to be respected, but it could also be modified in light of other important considerations. On an even more controversial point, the same responsum ruled that combustion for energy (such as that which occurs in an automobile) does not constitute the type of “kindling” prohibited on Shabbat.
4.1.7 Buying and Selling.
4.1.7.1 One should normally neither buy nor sell on Shabbat. This includes both the buying and selling of goods for profit and the buying and selling of goods that are not for profit (such as religious articles). Thus, we will not sell items (such as books or CD’s) in our synagogues on Shabbat.
4.1.7.2 “Buying and selling” here also includes payment for food or entertainment. Therefore, dining out or other recreational activity that involves spending money is inappropriate on Shabbat.
4.1.7.3 Credit card purchases are buying.
4.1.7.4 Offerings and tzedakah on Shabbat do not constitute buying and selling. The prohibition of practicing one’s occupation on Shabbat implies that Jews should not sell merchandise on Shabbat. While this is not explicitly stated in the Torah, it is presumed as early as the prophet Amos, who indicates that even the wicked refrain from selling wheat on Shabbat (Amos 8:4-5). Nehemiah makes clear that the purchasing of goods on Shabbat likewise profanes the holy day (Nehemiah 10:31; 13:15-18). Rabbinic tradition extended this prohibition of buying and selling by forbidding any contact with money on Shabbat. This helpful custom reinforced the basic prohibition, and fostered an experience of the holiness of the day. Strict adherence to this halakhic extension would, of course, rule out the giving of offerings and tzdeakah on Shabbat. While acknowledging the value of the traditional practice, the Messianic Jewish Rabbinical Council takes no official position on the appropriateness of giving offerings and tzedakah on Shabbat. Decision 4.1.7.4 does, however, make clear that such giving
MJRC Standards of Observance 31 4.1 Shabbat: does not violate the Torah’s basic prohibition of buying and selling on Shabbat. Decisions & 4.1.8 Traveling. Commentary continued In general, traveling on Shabbat conflicts with the spirit of the day. Nevertheless, limited travel may be appropriate to uphold certain values that are themselves associated with Shabbat. Thus, our basic practice does not prohibit travel on Shabbat to attend services at the synagogue, to visit the sick, and to sustain contact with the synagogue community and with one’s family, though such travel should not occupy a substantial portion of the day. Normally one should avoid traveling on Shabbat for other purposes. “Each of you stay where you are; do not leave your place on the seventh day” (Exodus 16:29). A strict reading of this text could lead to the view that one should not leave one’s house on Shabbat. However, the Talmud interprets the passage as meaning only that one should not travel far from one’s residence on Shabbat (b. Eruvin 51a). Rabbinic tradition established clear limits to such travel: within a city one could go any distance, whereas beyond city limits one could go two thousand cubits (about three quarters of a mile). Knowledge of and respect for such limits is seen in the Book of Acts, which refers to the distance between the Mount of Olives and the city of Jerusalem as “a Sabbath day’s journey” (Acts 1:12). Rabbinic tradition likewise prohibited riding a horse or a wagon on Shabbat. The authorities understood this to be a rabbinic rather than a Scriptural rule, ordained because such forms of travel may lead indirectly to the violation of Shabbat. Traditional rabbinic concerns still apply today. While these concerns may not lead us to avoid all travel on Shabbat, they should cause us to limit our travel to a minimum.
4.1.9 Food Preparation.
On Shabbat we do not manipulate and alter the world but receive and enjoy it. Cooking alters the composition of food. Therefore, all food for Shabbat should be cooked in advance, or the cooking should be initiated in advance (as in a crock- pot). However, food may be reheated. The traditional prohibition of cooking on Shabbat is implicit in the story of the manna (Exodus 16). The people gather two days supply of manna each Friday, and prepare their Shabbat meals before the holy day begins: “This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Tomorrow is a day of solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD; bake what you want to bake and boil what you want to boil, and all that is left over put aside to be kept until morning’” (Exodus 16:23). The baking and boiling must be completed while Shabbat is still “tomorrow.”
4.1.10 Writing and Drawing.
Due to the demands of modern life, the traditional prohibition on writing and drawing places an excessive burden upon the Messianic Jewish community in our contemporary situation. Therefore, our basic practice will not include prohibitions of the sort of writing and drawing that enhances the community’s ability to experience Shabbat and that does not violate the spirit of Shabbat. At the same time, we appreciate the reasons for these prohibitions and recognize their great value, and therefore commend them as part of our expanded practice.
MJRC Standards of Observance 32 4.1 Shabbat: As should be clear by the last sentence, this decision neither encourages nor sanctions Decisions & writing or drawing on Shabbat. It merely states that observance of the traditional Commentary prohibition is not required as part of our basic practice. continued 4.1.11 Laborious Activity.
Laborious activity such as moving heavy appliances or heavy furniture is not appropriate on Shabbat. Speaking in the name of God, the prophet Jeremiah sees the “bearing of a burden” as incompatible with the holiness of Shabbat: “Thus says the LORD: For the sake of your lives, take care that you do not bear a burden on the Sabbath day or bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem. And do not carry a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath or do any work, but keep the Sabbath day holy, as I commanded your ancestors” (Jeremiah 17:21-22). While this text appears to us to focus on the carrying of any heavy load on Shabbat, rabbinic tradition understood it differently. It is there interpreted as applying to the carrying of any object, regardless of its size or weight, but only when that object is moved from one domain to another. According to the Mishnah (Shabbat 7:2), the thirty-ninth major category of work prohibited on Shabbat is “removing an object from one domain to another.” As with the other basic categories of work, this prohibition is traditionally viewed as Scriptural rather than rabbinic in nature. Traditional Halakhah also prohibited the carrying of heavy objects within a domain, but this was seen as a rabbinic rather than Scriptural limitation, imposed to preserve the spirit of Shabbat. In our view, the authoritative sources of the two commandments (not carrying from one domain to another, not bearing a heavy burden) should be reversed. We understand the prohibition of bearing a heavy burden as Scriptural, and the prohibition of carrying any object from one domain to another as rabbinic. We respect the rabbinic limitation and commend it as an expanded practice, but we have not included it as part of our basic practice.
4.1.12 The Spirit of Shabbat.
On Shabbat one should avoid as much as possible activities that, while not strictly work, are not in keeping with the spirit of Shabbat. This principle is called shevut.
To keep the spirit of Shabbat, it is important that the people one is with are not violating the spirit of Shabbat. Therefore, it is best to avoid Shabbat activities that involve the general public.
In determining which social amusements are fitting to Shabbat and which unfitting, one may be guided by the words of Morris Joseph (Judaism as Creed and Life, New York: Bloch, 1920), quoted by Issac Klein (pages 89-90): “The Sabbath is a sacred day and there are certain kinds of enjoyment which by their very nature are out of harmony with its inherent holiness. Participation in them on the Sabbath is like a sudden intrusion of a shrill street organ on a beautiful melody sung by a lovely voice. It is difficult, almost impossible, to lay down a definite rule on this point, to say ‘This sort of amusement is allowable, that sort improper, on the Sabbath.’ The matter must be left to the individual conscience, to each person’s sense of what is seemly.”
MJRC Standards of Observance 33 4.1 Shabbat: 4.1.12.1 Due to the socially fragmenting effect of television on families, normally Decisions & it is best to avoid television on Shabbat. In particular, we consider the watching of Commentary commercial television to be inappropriate on Shabbat. continue 4.1.12.2 It is best to leave mail unopened till Shabbat is over.
4.1.12.3 It is best to not compose, send, retrieve, or read e-mail on Shabbat.
4.1.12.4 Use of the telephone should be minimized. One should especially avoid usage which intrudes upon the spirit of Shabbat.
4.1.12.5 Cell phones, beepers, and electronic messaging devices should be turned off on Shabbat, and not be used except for emergencies. Isaac Klein provides a clear and concise statement of the meaning of shevut: “The term shevut (resting) covers a whole area of activities which are not strictly work but are to be avoided because they are not in the Spirit of the Sabbath, or because doing them may lead to acts that constitute a major desecration of the Sabbath” (84). This is a crucial concept for making Shabbat a transforming experience rather than a mere compliance with a set of arbitrary external restrictions. It is possible to avoid all forms of work, yet never enter into the spirit of Shabbat. To partake of that spirit, one must combine the joyful experience of the day’s holiness with the avoidance of all activities that detract from that holiness. In addition to television, we must be careful in our use of computers and recorded video. It is possible to employ these media in a way that preserves the spirit of Shabbat. However, they also have great potential for undermining that spirit, especially when members of the family retreat to their own monitors and their own private worlds, or when the contents viewed involve intense sensory stimulation, or are violent or immodest. Abraham Joshua Heschel described Shabbat as “a palace in time which we build. It is made of soul, of joy and reticence” (Heschel, The Sabbath, 15). While Shabbat exists whether we observe it or not, our experience of the day depends on how we build that palace in our lives. The habit of avoiding distracting activities and thoughts while actively participating in Shabbat-related activities has the cumulative effect of creating an atmosphere entirely different from the other six days of the week, a time without struggle or worry.
4.2 HOLIDAYS: ust about everyone has a calendar America is a duplicate of any other. The INTRODUCTION in their kitchen, and there is appointments, commitments, celebrations, J probably not a kitchen calendar and observances on each particular calendar Why Celebrate the anywhere without hand-drawn circles constitute the stitching that makes each Jewish Holidays? and scribbled notes. What are these notes family unique and binds it together as one. and circles? They are the appointments What is true for every family in America is and commitments that make each family true as well for the family of Israel scattered unique – the dental appointments, soccer around the globe and sown across time games, music lessons, birthdays, celebrations, and eternity. The holidays of Israel are our vacations, graduations, and anniversaries unique calendar, circled and scribbled, that distinguish one family from another. stained with cholent, wine, charoset, No other calendar out of all the millions birthday cake, and sometimes blood. But of kitchen calendars scattered throughout
MJRC Standards of Observance 34 4.2 Holidays: this calendar is what stitches us together as both the happy ones and the sad, will not Introduction a family, enabling this scattered and trans- annul our family status, can there be any continued generational family to rejoice together, doubt that such neglect weakens family ties? to weep together, and to steep in fragrant Because it is important for us to be family memory. to each other, all the holidays are important And just as it is erosive to family ties to – the big ones and the small ones. They forget birthdays and anniversaries, so Jewish are no burden – they are the stitching that identity erodes and our ties with each other binds us to each other, and by which we unravel when we fail to honor our common honor the One who is the Father of us all. calendar. While neglecting these holy days,
4.2 HOLIDAYS: 4.2.1 Moedim. DECISIONS & 4.2.1.1 According to the explicit teaching of the Torah, we should avoid melechet COMMENTARY avodah (servile work) on the mo’edim (Leviticus 23:7, 21, 35-36). According to
Jewish tradition, this includes all Sabbath restrictions on work with the exception of the transferring of flame, the preparation and cooking of food, and the carrying of objects, all of which may be done on mo’edim. What are the mo’edim? They are the “fixed” or “appointed” times listed and described in Leviticus 23. In that chapter they are also called “holy assemblies” (mikra’ey kodesh), occasions set apart for Israel to gather and worship the Holy One. Leviticus 23 lists the following holidays as mo’edim: Pesach, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, and Shemini Atzeret. According to Ramban, melechet avodah (servile work) refers to work that is a burden, such as ordinary labor in factory and field. Exodus12:16 describes the work that is
permitted on Pesach: “only what every person is to eat (okhel nefesh), that alone may be prepared for you.” Based on this verse, the Mishnah states: “The difference between a holiday (yom tov) and Shabbat is only the food (okhel nefesh)” (m. Megillah 1:5). The preparation of food is forbidden on Shabbat, but permitted on holidays. Rabbinic tradition understood this permission to include all actions that would be involved in normal food preparation, such as transferring a flame for cooking, and carrying objects from one domain to another. According to b. Betzah 12a, the houses of Shammai and Hillel disagreed over whether this permission meant that such activities (e.g., transferring a flame and carrying objects from one domain to another) were allowed in general on holidays, or only when food is actually being prepared. The House of Hillel took the more lenient view, and their position prevailed. It should be noted that the Shabbat prohibition of buying and selling also applies to holidays.
4.2.1.2 The last (seventh) day of Pesach and Shemini Atzeret are full mo’edim. The Torah is unambiguous on this point: the final day of the Feast of Unlveavened Bread (Exodus 12:16; Leviticus 23:8) and the eighth day after the beginning of Sukkot (Leviticus 23:36, 39) are full holidays. This needs to be stressed because so few Jews today outside the Orthodox world observe these holidays.
4.2.1.3 In accordance with the traditional practice of Disapora Jews, we honor the
MJRC Standards of Observance 35 4.2 Holidays: additional day added to Pesach, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, and Sukkot as mo’edim. Decisions & At the same time, since the establishment of these days is d’rabbanan (Rabbinic Law) Commentary rather than d’oraita (Biblical Law), and since Reform Jews and some Conservative Jews continued no longer observe them as mo’edim, we will place less emphasis on their observance than on those days that are mo’edim d’oraita. The day added to Sukkot after Shemini Atzeret is called Simchat Torah. It celebrates the end of one year’s cycle of Torah readings, and the beginning of the next year’s cycle. In the land of Israel Simchat Torah and Shemini Atzeret are observed on the same day, and are in fact one holiday. We can honor holidays, even if we are not fully observing them. For example, we could decide to practice our occupation on such a day, and yet still avoid public acts that treat the day as secular or normal (e.g., mowing the lawn, painting the house, going to the movies).
4.2.1.4 While we acknowledge that refraining from work on the mo’edim is obligatory d’oraita, we also acknowledge that many among us – as in the wider Jewish community – will be unable to observe them all in this way. Therefore, we will not include refraining from melechet avodah on the mo’edim as a basic practice (with the exception of Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah, where avoidance of work is a basic practice). This should not be construed as halakhic “permission” to profane these holidays. The Torah and Jewish tradition require the observance of the mo’edim, and we cannot rescind this requirement. Nevertheless, it must be recalled that we are a community in the process of returning to the Torah; our definition of “basic practice” should not function as a com- munal goal but instead as a starting point for continued growth.
4.2.1.5 In order to foster as much observance of these mitzvot as possible and to avoid an “all or nothing” mentality, we should observe the following prioritization in descending order among the other mo’edim: (1) The first day of Pesach; (2) The first day of Sukkot; (3) The first day of Shavuot; (4) Shemini Atzeret; (5) The seventh day of Pesach; (6) the Second day of Rosh Hashanah (7) The added days for the diaspora, in descending order of priority: Simchat Torah, the Eighth day of Pesach, the Second day of Shavuot. From a strictly halakhic point of view, the only important distinction here is between the days required by the Written Torah (the first five above) and those decreed by the Sages (number six). Thus, the first day of Sukkot is not “more obligatory” than Shemini Atzeret. Still, the religious sensibility of the Jewish people has assigned priority to certain mitzvot, as seen, for example, by differentiated levels of observance of the various holidays among Jews who seek to live a Jewish life but are not committed to the complete framework of traditional Halakhah. While such religious sensibility does not reveal differentiated levels of objective obligation, it does suggest the order in which those who are returning to the Torah should structure their return.
4.2.1.6 We commend the avoidance of all activities that would detract from the peacefulness, rest, and sanctity of the mo’edim.
4.2.1.7 We commend attendance at communal worship services on the mo’edim, but if such attendance is not possible one should use the standard holiday Amidah
MJRC Standards of Observance 36 4.2 Holidays: in one’s daily prayer. It is appropriate to make special preparations for holiday Decisions & meals, since such preparations add to the distinctiveness, sanctity and communal Commentary aspect of the mo’edim. continued 4.2.2 Yom Kippur.
4.2.2.1 On Yom Kippur one should fast completely (no food or drink) beginning before sundown and ending after nightfall the following day. This applies to all of bar/bat mitzvah age and over. Those who have special health needs should eat and drink according to those needs. The Torah commands the practice of “self-affliction” (‘inuy nefesh) on Yom Kippur (Leviticus 16:29, 31; 23:27, 32; Numbers 29:7). Other biblical texts demonstrate that this phrase implies fasting (Psalm 35:13; Isaiah 58:3), along with other expressions of self- denial. In the Acts of the Apostles, the day is referred to simply as “the fast” (Acts 27:9). According to the Mishnah (m. Yoma 8:1), and the consensus of Jewish tradition, the fast required on Yom Kippur involves abstention from both food and drink.
Children nine years old or younger should not fast on Yom Kippur. Children more than nine years old should learn to fast, adding hours each year as they grow older. “Children need not be made to fast on Yom Kippur, but they should train them the year before or two years before, in order that they become accustomed to the observance of commandments” (m. Yoma 8:4). The Shulchan Aruch recommends that the training begin at age nine (133:19).
4.2.2.2 On Yom Kippur one should not bathe for pleasure, but washing the hands and face for hygienic purposes is not inappropriate.
4.2.2.3 On Yom Kippur one should not engage in sexual relations. The Mishnah defines the “self-affliction” required on Yom Kippur as involving abstention from washing (for pleasure), sexual intercourse, and the wearing of leather sandals, in addition to a total fast (m. Yoma 8:1).
4.2.3 Rosh Hashanah. On Rosh Hashanah one should hear the sounding of the shofar. The Torah (Numbers 29:1) calls the first day of the seventh month (reckoned according to the festal calendar, in which Nissan is the first month) a “day when the horn is sounded” (yom teruah). It also states (Leviticus 23: 24) that the day is “commemorated with loud blasts” (zichron teruah). According to the Mishnah, this implies that a Jew is obligated to hear the sounding of the shofar on Rosh Hashanah (m. Rosh Hashanah 3:7).
4.2.4 Sukkot.
4.2.4.1 As weather permits during Sukkot, one should eat as many of one’s meals as possible in a sukkah (whether a congregational sukkah, a friend’s sukkah, or one’s own). We would also commend the expanded practice of sleeping in the sukkah. “The Sukkah is a temporary structure…erected in the open air, under the sky, not in a room or under a tree. It consists of four walls and removable covering…Theoretically two complete walls and part of a third wall satisfy the minimum requirements for a Sukkah, but it is customary to have four walls, and these should be strong enough to
MJRC Standards of Observance 37 4.2 Holidays: withstand the impact of ordinary winds…The covering, called sekhakh, must be of Decisions & material that grows from the soil, has been detached from the ground, and cannot Commentary be defiled…The sekhakh should be loose enough so that one can see the sky, yet thick continued enough so that the shadow it casts on the ground exceeds the light thrown by the sun.” (Klein, 162-63) “You shall live in booths (sukkot) seven days; all citizens of Israel shall live in booths” (Leviticus 23:42). The Mishnah teaches that this means making the sukkah one’s primary home and one’s house a secondary home during the seven days of the holiday (m. Sukkah 2:9). However, the Mishnah also teaches that one should move from the sukkah to the house when harsh weather intervenes. The Shulchan Aruch expands on this concession: “If staying in the sukkah causes you discomfort, that is if you are troubled by the cold weather or the wind, or by a bad odor or similar annoyances, you are exempt from the mitzvah of sukkah on all nights other than the first night, and on all the days of Sukkot” (135:17).
4.2.4.2 As an expanded practice, we commend building one’s own sukkah for the celebration of Sukkot.
4.2.4.3 One should wave the lulav and etrog at least once during the holiday in accordance with traditional practice. The traditional mitzvah berachah should be recited before waving. While it is acceptable to wave a lulav/etrog that belongs to the congregation or to a fellow congregant, it is preferable to purchase one’s own. “On the first day [of Sukkot] you shall take the product of hadar trees, branches of palm trees, boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days” (Leviticus 23:40). According to the Talmud, the “product of hadar trees” is the citron (etrog), and the “leafy tree” is the myrtle (b. Sukkah 35a, 32b). The lulav consists of palm, myrtle, and willow branches placed together. To fulfill the mitzvah of waving the lulav, the etrog is placed in the left hand, the lulav in the right hand, and they are held together so that they touch one another. When reciting the mitzvah blessing, the tip of the etrog points downward and the stem upward. When waving, the tip of the etrog points upward and the stem downward. The lulav and etrog are waved first toward the east, then toward the south, then west, north, up, and down.
4.2.5 Pesach.
4.2.5.1 From 10 a.m. on the day of the first Seder (the 14th of Nissan) till the end of Passover eight days later no leaven shall be eaten. According to the traditional rabbinic interpretation, the Written Torah forbids eating leaven from noon on the day the Passover lamb was sacrificed (m. Pesachim1:4 ). This time was set by calculating the earliest hour when the afternoon sacrifices (which on this day included the Passover lambs) would begin in the Temple (m. Pesachim 5:1). The Sages then added an additional two-hour buffer as a fence around the Torah.
4.2.5.2 Leaven (called chametz) refers specifically to five kinds of grain which rise when put in contact with water. These are wheat, barley, spelt, rye and oats. During Pesach we do not eat these, nor do we eat foods containing any of them. Of course, the exception here is matzah – which consists of unleavened bread made from any of these five types of grain.
MJRC Standards of Observance 38 4.2 Holidays: 4.2.5.3 In addition to the above and in accordance with the Ashkenazic tradition Decisions & (the lineage of most American Jews), we should also avoid eating the following Commentary foods on Pesach (called kitniyot): rice, millet, corn, legumes (e.g., beans, peas, continued lentils), sesame and sunflower seeds. According to traditional authorities, these are forbidden because they can easily be confused with the five grains listed above. Since string beans are classified as a vegetable and cannot be confused with grains, they may be eaten on Pesach.
The avoidance of kitniyot on Pesach would not be a practice for Messianic Jews living in a Sephardic Jewish environment. Sephardic Jewish families living in an Ashkenazic environment may follow the Sephardic minhag (custom) in their own homes, but they should respect the minhag of the wider community when participating in community events or when inviting those from the community into their homes. Rabbinic tradition stresses the importance of conforming to local Jewish custom, even when it differs from one’s own normal practice. “Rabbi Tanhum bar Hanilai said: One should never break away from local custom. For Moses ascended on High and ate no bread [like the Angels, who do not eat], whereas the Ministering Angels descended below [Genesis 18] and ate bread” (b. Bava Metzia 86b).
In accordance with the determinations of many traditional authorities, the use of peanuts and peanut oil are permissible, as are the use of legumes in a form other than their natural state, for example corn syrup, corn oil, and soy oil.
4.2.5.4 Foods that have a “Kosher for Passover” hekhsher (symbol indicating official kosher certification) are guaranteed to contain no leaven. During the eight days of Pesach shoppers should look for the distinctive markings on food packages.
4.2.5.5 While we commend the traditional approach to kashering dishes and silverware or having separate dishes and silverware for Pesach, we do not consider this to be a basic practice.
4.2.5.6 Just prior to Pesach, a family may sell all their chametz to a non-Jewish friend or neighbor. All the chametz is gathered, taken out of the house for the duration of Pesach and sold for one dollar. After Pesach, the money is exchanged for the chametz. For the purpose of our basic practice, one may also keep the chametz in one’s own home, but separated from the foods eaten for Passover (e.g., in the basement, a closet, or garage).
In some synagogues the procedure of selling chametz is entrusted to the Rabbi who is granted “power of attorney” to establish the terms of the sale. Individuals in the synagogue may sign a registry indicating their agreement to have their Rabbi fulfill this responsibility on their behalf. In this case the soldchametz is kept in one’s home in a separate place. The Torah forbids not only the consumption of chametz on Pesach, but also its possession (Exodus 12:19). The complexity of the modern commercial food industry makes it extremely difficult to comply with the latter prohibition in a literal manner. The custom of isolating and selling chametz expresses our intention of treating it as though it were no longer present and no longer ours.
4.2.5.7 We commend the tradition of b’dikat chametz – the search for leaven. After sundown on the night before Pesach, all the lights of the home are turned
MJRC Standards of Observance 39 4.2 Holidays: off, a candle is lit, a berachah recited (al b’ur chametz) and the search for a few Decisions & intentionally scattered crumbs of bread is begun. After these are scooped up, they Commentary are set-aside until morning and burned. The power of the symbolic removal of continued chametz in such a deliberate and dramatic fashion is especially meaningful for families with small children.
4.2.5.8 The chances of accidentally eating food mixed with chametz is great when eating in restaurants. Therefore, during the week of Pesach one should avoid eating in restaurants, unless one is merely purchasing a beverage.
4.2.5.9 In accordance with traditional Ashkenazic practice, we should not serve or eat lamb at a Seder. As stated above, non-Ashkenazic families living in an Ashkenazic environment may follow the non-Ashkenazic minhag in their own home, but they should respect the minhag of the wider community when participating in community events or when inviting those from the community into their home.
4.2.6 Counting the Omer.
The counting of the omer is to be done in accordance with the existing Halakhah, commencing on the second day of Pesach and culminating at Shavuot fifty days following. Though various schools of thought existed during the Second Temple period concerning which day to commence the counting, the existing Halakhah has prevailed for the past two millennia and any change would be an unnecessary adaptation resulting in an odd variance from the greater Jewish community. The practice of counting the omer derives from Leviticus 23:15: “And from the day on which you bring the sheaf (omer) of elevation offering – the day after the Sabbath – you shall count seven weeks.” The Sages understood the command “you shall count” as requiring a formal, liturgical act in which the days between Pesach and Shavuot would each receive a numerical designation. Following the interpretation adopted by the Pharisees during the Second Temple period (and supported by the Septuagint, Philo, and Josephus), rabbinic tradition understood “the Sabbath” of Leviticus 23:15 to be the first day of Pesach. Thus, the counting of the omer would commence on the second day of Pesach. Apparently the Sadducees and the Qumarn community interpreted the word as referring to a Saturday – either the Saturday after Pesach began, or the one after the seven-day Pesach holiday ended. According to their reckoning, the practice of counting the omer would always begin on a Sunday.
4.2.7 Minor Fasts and Festivals.
4.2.7.1 The Ninth of Av. Our basic practice includes fasting on the Ninth of Av. Zechariah 8:19 refers to four fasts, all associated with the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BCE. The most important of these occurs on the Ninth of Av. According to the Mishnah (m. Taanit 4:6), both the first and the second Temples were destroyed on this day. Many other historical calamities (such as the expulsion from Spain) have befallen the Jewish people on the Ninth of Av. Consequently, after Yom Kippur this day has been the most solemn fast in the Jewish calendar. While work is not prohibited (a common characteristic of all the minor fasts and festivals), one avoids all eating and drinking from sunset to sunset, as on Yom Kippur.
MJRC Standards of Observance 40 4.2 Holidays: 4.2.7.2 Chanukah. Our basic practice includes lighting menorah candles on Decisions & Chanukah, accompanied by the traditional berachot. (As with Shabbat candles, a Commentary Messianic berachah may be added.) continued 4.2.7.3 Purim. Our basic practice includes hearing the Megillah (the Book of Esther) read on Purim.
4.2.7.4 Yom HaShoah and Yom HaAtzma’ut. Our basic practice involves commemorating these days by gathering (if possible) with others from our congregation or with the wider Jewish community. As an expanded practice we commend lighting a yahrzeit candle on Yom HaShoah. These holidays commemorate the two monumental events of twentieth century Jewish history: the holocaust and the establishment of the State of Israel. These events, both of profound spiritual significance, have left an indelible mark on the consciousness of the Jewish people. It is appropriate that we gather with other Jews on these occasions to demonstrate our solidarity with our people, expressing together our grief and our joy.
4.3 PRAYER: avvening is praying traditional of years. We inherit and benefit from INTRODUCTION D Jewish liturgy in a traditional manner, their trial and error. In submitting to the hopefully with other Jews. Why might this discipline of davvening, we say yes to our Why pray in the be something we should do? identity as Jews, yes to our priestly role traditional Jewish First, we need to davven because it puts us in the world, yes to our God, and yes to manner? in “a different space.” When we davven, we our identity as members of Klal Yisrael. reconnect with our identity as members of We come into the world of Jewish prayer a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. It together as participants, learners, and co- is not enough to remember that this is true: bearers of the priestly burdens, privileges, in davvening – in the postures it requires, and responsibilities of the people of Israel. the prescribed “script” that guides our Fourth, we need to davven because the words, the “processing of the psyche” that depth and diversity of the liturgy speaks ensues – we viscerally, experientially, and to us in different ways each time we do it. spiritually reconnect with our true identity so Although the liturgy remains the same, the that we have a greater likelihood of acting experience is always different. And perhaps out of that awareness throughout the day. this is because each day we are different. Second, we need to davven out of obedi- Were it not for the liturgy, we would lack ence to Hashem’s call upon Israel to be a any prayer measuring stick by which to kingdom of priests and a holy nation: to take notice of how we are different today not davven, to not bring God this sacrifice from yesterday, and, to a degree, differ- of prayer and praise is to be derelict in ent from all of our yesterdays – and also our duty as members of that people who how we, like the liturgy, remain the same responded at Sinai, “na’aseh v’nishma” – we through all our changes. will do and we will hear (understand). Fifth, we need to davven because the Third, we need to davven because otherwise discipline shapes our theology and spirituality we are left to our own devices in seeking as Messianic Jews. And if we don’t submit to express and nurture our spirituality. to this discipline, then other internal and Davvening keeps our prayers from becoming external factors will end up shaping our narcissistic, subjective, or a neglected theology and spirituality, generally in a discipline. In davvening we submit to the manner dissonant with our Jewish identity. wisdom of our people through thousands To paraphrase Bob Dylan, “You gotta be
MJRC Standards of Observance 41 4.3 Prayer: shaped by somebody; it might be the Jewish is what Hebrews is speaking of when it Introduction tradition, and it might be another tradition, borrows the language of Tanach and puts continued but you gotta be shaped by somebody.” these words on the lips of Messiah: “I will proclaim your name to my brothers and Sixth, we need to davven because of sisters; in the midst of the congregation I the regularity it calls us to. Even if we will praise you” (Hebrews 2:12). He is in never davven three times a day – to pray the midst of the congregation of his people Shacharit daily, or even just Monday, praising his Father. When we davven, we Thursday, and Shabbat, is a call we need are joining our prayers to those of Yeshua, to heed. Such davvening is a context in our Great High Priest. We come to Hashem which we can manifest faithfulness to the in him, with him and through him. As he promises we make to others (“I’ll pray is, so we are: as he does, so we do – in him, for you”). It also constitutes a regular through him, for the honor, glory, and appointment with God at which time progress of the purposes of Hashem. progress is made on important matters, often in a manner structured around our Yeshua is engaged in loving agony for the inherited prayer agenda, the Amidah. culmination of Hashem’s saving purpose for the world. In Scripture, God, Messiah, Seventh, we need to davven in order to heed the Holy Spirit, and God’s faithful people the eternal call, “Seek my face.” This regular are all described as being engaged in longing appointment is like a regular audience with and struggle toward the consummation of the King, and we will often find ourselves all things. In Colossians 1:24, the Apostle smiling as we go into it, because we will Paul says, “in my flesh I am making up what learn that as we davven, we sense the King’s is lacking in Messiah’s afflictions for the sake presence. It is not as if we generate that of His Body.” The point is that just as Mes- Presence out of our own subjectivity, but siah participates in Hashem’s struggle and rather we find God there, almost as if God agony for tikkun olam, the full redemption waits to meet us in the traditional practice. and repair of the world, so Paul participates Eighth, we need to davven because we need in these struggles, and so should we. the companionship of the tradition. There Tenth, we need to davven because our role is a holy specialness, a different texture and is indispensable to the purposes of God. awareness that davvening brings, a sense In the Tanach, all sacrifices were to be of being part of a global trans-generational seasoned with salt. Yeshua told his talmidim, community. This is a necessary and life- “You are the salt of the earth; but if salt giving alternative to the isolation of mod- has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be ern hyper-individualistic spiritualities. In restored? It is no longer good for anything praying within the tradition we are never but is thrown out and trampled under socially alone, even if we are not meet- foot” (Matthew 5:13). We are the salt on ing with other Jews at that time. But of the sacrifices of the prayers of Israel – that course, we experience this companionship is part of our function in the world. The in a deeper manner when we pray with a only question is, will we play our part? minyan (a quorum of ten Jews). Of course there is a learning curve in davvening. Ninth, we need to davven because there But all of us share this in common – we we meet and join with our Messiah in his can only begin from where we are. The priestly service for Israel, the nations, and important thing is to be on the right road, the cosmos. As High Priest he offers to for no matter how far we are along the Hashem the sacrifice of himself, but also the road, the most important thing is that we sacrifice of his praise, thanks, and petition meet each other, our tradition, and our for the sake of Israel and the world. This God who awaits us there.
MJRC Standards of Observance 42 4.3 PRAYER: 4.3.1.1 Our basic practice should include praying the Shema, the Amidah and the DECISIONS & Alenu prayer each morning. Prayer may be recited in the person’s native language COMMENTARY or Hebrew, whichever allows the individual to more actively engage in the prayer. We would however commend Hebrew as the preferred language of prayer. The Shema consists of three paragraphs from the Torah (Deuteronomy 6:4-9; 11:13-21; Numbers 15:37-41). According to the Mishanh (m. Tamid 4:3; 5:1), these three paragraphs (plus the Decalogue) were recited daily by the priests who officiated in the temple. After the destruction of the temple, rabbinic tradition saw this recitation (minus the Decalogue) as incumbent upon all adult free Jewish males (m. Berachot 3:3). Since Deuteronomy 6:7 and 11:19 command that we recite these words “when you lie down and when you rise up,” it was determined that the three paragraphs of the Shema should be recited each morning and evening. While the sages viewed the daily recitation of the Shema as ordained by the Written Torah, they recognized that the Eighteen (Shemoneh Esreh) Blessings of the weekday Amidah derived from the post-biblical period. Maimonides teaches that the commandment to pray daily is biblical, but the precise wording and timing of the Amidah (which fulfills that commandment) was determined by later tradition (Mishneh Torah, Laws of Prayer 1:1-3). Just as the recitation of the Shema can be traced back to temple practice, so the Amidah appears to have its origins in the prayers offered by the people while the priests fulfilled their sacrificial duties. Such prayers were offered by the crowds gathered in the temple courts (Luke 1:10). When Peter and John go up to the Temple at the time of the afternoon sacrifice (Acts3:1 ), the author of Acts even speaks of it as “the hour of prayer” (rather than “the hour of sacrifice”). Apparently the devout would pray at this hour, even if they could not be in Jerusalem (Acts 10:1-3, 30). Thus, the Talmudic traditions that link the Amidah to the daily sacrifices appear to have some merit (see b. Berachot26 b). This link would also explain the term “Amidah,” which means “standing”: this was the posture of the priests as they offered sacrifice, and it is also the posture of those who recite the Amidah, even today, at the times of the daily sacrifices. While the Alenu derives from a much later period than the Shema and the Amidah, it has been held in great esteem among all observant Jews for centuries, and has become the customary way of ending every statutory service. When we pray the Shema, Amidah, and Alenu daily, we are plunging into the heart and soul of the traditional Jewish encounter with God, and are also fulfilling Israel’s corporate obligation to come before God as a priestly people.
4.3.1.2 Recognizing the difficulties in doing so, our basic practice does not involve praying the Minchah service.
The Minchah service, prayed in the mid-afternoon, consists primarily of the daily Amidah. As its name suggests (minchah means “gift” or “grain offering”), this service has its roots in the prayer accompanying the afternoon sacrifice in the Jerusalem temple (Acts 3:1, 10:1-3, 30). While not included in our basic practice, it is a venerable tradition to be honored and commended.
4.3.1.3 In lieu of a Ma’ariv service, our basic practice for evening prayer involves a bedtime Shema. As an expanded practice, we commend the recitation of the three
MJRC Standards of Observance 43 4.3 Prayer: paragraphs of the Shema, its accompanying blessings, and the Ma’ariv Amidah. Decisions & The statutory core of the standard Ma’ariv service is the Shema. The sages of the Mishnah Commentary disagreed about whether the Amidah was also a necessary part of this service (b. Berachot continued 27b). They decided to include the Amidah, but in recognition of its ambiguous status they ruled that it should not be repeated publicly by the Reader (unlike the Shachrit and Minchah Amidah).
4.3.1.4 The Shema section should consist at minimum of the Shema and the V’ahavta. But we also commend as expanded practice the recitation of all three paragraphs of the Shema (including V’haya im-shmo’a and Va-yomer), along with the blessings before and after the Shachrit and Ma’ariv Shema. “In the morning one recites two blessings before it [the Shema] and one after it. And in the evening, two before it and two after it” (m. Berachot 1:4). While the themes of these blessings were already determined by the time of the Mishnah, the precise wording varied from location to location. Reuven Hammer explains the function of these blessings: “First we need to know why there are blessings surrounding the Shema at all. Why not simply recite the passages from the Torah? Surely they are the main concern. Rabbinic Judaism, however, prescribed that blessings be recited before and after the ritual recitation of any biblical passage… Thus the blessing immediately prior to the Shema and the blessing immediately following it really serve first to introduce it as a biblical reading and then to affirm the truth of what has been read” (Entering Jewish Prayer, 135). The first blessing before both the morning and evening Shema acknowledges God as the creator of all, with attention given especially to light and darkness (as appropriate to the time of day). Since the blessing after the Shema focuses on God as redeemer, Hammer notes the theological significance of the three basic blessings surrounding the Shema: “Thus the theme of creation is joined to the Shema, so that the three themes basic to Jewish belief are explicitly discussed: creation, revelation, and redemption” (137).
4.3.1.5 The Amidah referred to above is the entire weekday Amidah.
4.3.2 Shabbat Prayer.
On Shabbat our basic practice is the same as our daily basic practice with the substitution of the Shabbat Amidah.
4.3.3 Holiday Prayer.
On holidays our basic practice is the same as our daily basic practice with the substitutions and additions appropriate for the particular holiday.
4.3.4 Berachot.
4.3.4.1 Our basic practice is to recite the relevant blessing upon the performance of those mitzvot which are themselves part of our basic practice, when acknowledging God’s provision of food, and the Shehecheyanu when appropriate. The formula of blessing (Baruch Atah…) is the basic unit of Jewish worship. As seen above, it is integral to all of the statutory services (Shachrit, Minchah, Ma’ariv). It also
MJRC Standards of Observance 44 4.3 Prayer: provides the framework by which Jews have traditionally sanctified the events of daily Decisions & life. The standard berachot can enable us as Messianic Jews to fulfill Paul’s charge: Commentary “everything you do or say, do in the name of the Lord Yeshua, giving thanks through him continued to God the Father” (Colossians 3:17). Before fulfilling a ritual mitzvah, one recites the blessing associated with that mitzvah (…asher kid’shanu be-mitzvotav ve-tzivanu…). In this way we acknowledge that the mitzvah is God’s gracious gift to us, and also demonstrate that we are consciously and deliberately acting in obedience to a divine command. The Shehcheyanu blessing is mentioned in the Mishnah (m. Berachot 9:3). There we are told that it is recited when one builds a new house or buys new things. These examples are evidently meant to illustrate rather than exhaust its use. Its significance in Jewish life is noted by Reuven Hammer: “The blessing that for many elicits the most profound emotional reaction is the shehecheyanu. Recited at every holiday, at every special new occasion, this blessing is attached to the experience of life itself. To be able to say, ‘Who has kept us in life, sustained us, and allowed us to reach this moment,’ means having survived to reach yet another season, another milestone. We bless God, whose sustaining force keeps us alive” (263-64).
4.3.4.2 Our basic practice for acknowledging God’s provision of food consists of prayer before meals. The general blessing before meals is Shehakol niyeh bid’varo. At meals where bread is consumed, one instead recites Hamotzi as a general blessing for all food eaten. If one is primarily eating fruit, one recites P’ri Haetz; if vegetables, P’ri Ha’adamah, and if pastry, Miney Mezonot. The basic rules governing blessings before eating are found in m. Berachot 6. The Talmud sets these blessings within a broader context: “It is forbidden to a person to enjoy anything of this world without a blessing” (b. Berachot 35a).
4.3.4.3 As an expanded practice, we also commend prayer after meals, consisting of at least the first blessing of Birkat Hamazon (Hazan et Hakol). The sages saw the recitation of the Grace after Meals (Birkat HaMazon) as a biblical commandment ordained in Deuteronomy 8:10: “When you have eaten your fill, give thanks to the Lord your God for the good land which He has given you.” The recitation of blessings before eating was a secondary derivation from this primary commandment: “If one says a blessing when one is full, how much more should one do so when one is hungry?” (b. Berachot 35a). Nevertheless, among Jews today blessings before eating are common practice, whereas blessings after eating are exceptional. Our basic practice thus follows common custom rather than strict halakhic priority. Hopefully, over time Birkat HaMazon will also become a normal part of our life.
4.3.5 Practices Connected to the Shema.
4.3.5.1 Our basic practice involves affixing a kosher mezuzah to the doorpost of the main entryway to one’s home, according to traditional practice. The mezuzah contains the two first paragraphs of the Shema (Deuteronomy6:4-9; 11:13-21). Both of these paragraphs include the commandment to “inscribe them [these words] on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” The affixing of a mezuzah thus fulfills this Torah commandment in a literal way, just as the recitation of the evening and
MJRC Standards of Observance 45 4.3 Prayer: morning Shema (“when you lie down and when you get up”) fulfills literally another Decisions & part of the same text. Commentary In the Mishnah the mezuzah is associated with the Shema, tefillin, the Amidah, and continued Birkat Hamazon (m. Berachot 3:3). They are all statutory verbal expressions of Israel’s faithful devotion to Hashem.
4.3.5.2 Our basic practice includes wearing a tallit during one’s daily Shachrit prayer. The third paragraph of the Shema (Numbers 15:37-41) states: “Speak to the Israelite people and instruct them to make for themselves fringes (tzitzit) on the corners of their garments throughout the ages… look at it and recall all the commandments of the Lord and observe them.” In ancient times it was customary to wear four-cornered garments in daily life, and Israel is here commanded to attach tzitzit to such garments as a symbol of the mitzvot. Once people no longer wore such garments, it became common to wear a special four-cornered shawl with tzitzit when praying the morning service. In this way the tzitzit are worn, handled, and looked upon daily, and – like the mezuzah and tefillin – represent symbolically the divine Words that govern Jewish life and give it meaning, direction, and purpose.
4.3.5.3 Our basic practice includes laying tefillin at least once per week during one’s daily Shachrit prayer. As an expanded practice, we commend laying tefillin daily (with the exception of Shabbat and holidays). Tefillin are two black leather boxes, each containing four passages of the Torah: Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21 (the first two paragraphs of the Shema, also found in the mezuzah), and Exodus 13:1-10 and 11-16. Each of these passages speaks of having “a sign on your hand and a symbol/reminder on your forehead.” Jewish tradition sees this as a reference to the tefillin, which are bound on the arm and the forehead. Tefillin are closely linked to the recitation of the Shema. Ideally, according to the sages, one should wear tefillin while reciting the morning Shema (b. Berachot14 b). In reciting the words of the Shema and in literally wearing the words on our body, we take upon ourselves the yoke of the kingdom of heaven (we accept God’s sovereignty in our lives). “R. Yohanan also said: If one desires to accept upon himself the yoke of the kingdom of heaven in the most complete manner, [upon waking in the morning] one should consult nature [relieve oneself] and wash one’s hands and put on tefillin and recite the Shema and say the tefillah [the Amidah]: this is the complete acknowledgment of the kingdom of heaven.” (b. Berachot 14b-15a). Tefillin, like the tzitzit, are only worn by Jews, as they express our commitment to God’s covenant with Israel as embodied in the mitzvot. Tefillin are not worn on Shabbat or holidays, as these are also spoken of as “signs,” and would thus make the tefillin redundant.
4.3.6 Men, Women, and Basic Practices Related to Prayer.
4.3.6.1 Our basic practices in the area of prayer apply both to men and women.
4.3.6.2 In keeping with this, it would make sense to likewise see basic practices associated with prayer, such as the donning of tallit and tefillin, as applicable to both Jewish men and women. However, like many other contemporary Jewish movements, we recognize that certain traditional sensibilities lead many Jewish
MJRC Standards of Observance 46 4.3 Prayer: women to be reluctant to adopt these practices. Therefore, at this point we will Decisions & not establish these as basic practices for women, but will acknowledge the right Commentary of women to wear tallit and/or tefillin, if they choose to do so. Those who decide continued to wear tallit and/or tefillin should thereafter treat these practices as fulfilling an obligation, and should recite the appropriate mitzvah berachah. The Talmud exempts women from performing time-bound mitzvot: “every positive commandment whose observance is time dependent – men are obligated and women are exempt; but when a mitzvah is not time-dependent, men and women are equally obligated” (m. Kiddushin 1:7). Thus, women have been exempt from reciting the Shema and donning tefillin (time-bound mitzvot), but obligated to pray the Amidah and Birkat Hamazon (m. Berachot 3:3). At the same time, nowhere in the Talmud are women forbidden to perform mitzvot from which they are exempt, including the wearing of tallit and tefillin. A tradition is reported that “Michal the daughter of King Saul used to wear tefillin, and the sages did not protest” (b. Eruvin 96a). Maimonides and Rashi rule that women are permitted to perform mitzvot from which they are exempt, but should not recite the mitzvah blessing, since “who has commanded us” does not apply to them. Other sages even permitted the recitation of the mitzvah blessing. The obvious reason for the exemption from time-bound mitzvot is a woman’s need for flexibility in order to fulfill her traditional duties, especially those related to the care and rearing of children. In a society with large families, lower life-expectancy (and thus fewer non-childrearing years for women), and strictly demarcated gender roles, this exemption makes sense. In the developed world of the twenty-first century, the exemption is anachronistic (except, perhaps, in ultra-orthodox enclaves). Thus, rather than sitting in judgment on the tradition, we are concluding that the reasons for the traditional rulings no longer apply.
4.4 TEVILAT 4.4.1 Tevilat Mashiach is a mitzvah, a commandment of the Messiah. It is not a MASHIACH: rite reserved for the most dedicated followers of Yeshua or a mark of special piety. DECISIONS & Rather it is a basic practice that marks faithful reception of the good news and COMMENTARY entry into the community of the disciples of Yeshua.
4.4.2 To be eligible for Tevilat Mashiach, one should have received basic instruction in the message of the good news and its implications for Jewish life and in the meaning and significance of Tevilah, and should have expressed in words and deeds a commitment to Yeshua and his mitzvot and to the responsibilities of membership in the community of Yeshua’s disciples.
4.4.3 Ideally, Tevilat Mashiach should be administered in a body of water that meets the traditional requirements for a mikveh. However, if such a body of water is not available, Tevilat Mashiach may be administered in any body of water that is large enough to permit full body immersion.
4.4.4 As a rite signifying reception into the community of the disciples of Yeshua, Tevilat Mashiach should be administered in the presence of ten or more people who have themselves already received Messianic Tevilah. In exceptional circumstances this requirement may be waived, but in such cases there should be at least three witnesses (including the officiant).
MJRC Standards of Observance 47 4.4 Tevilat Mashiach: 4.4.5 While Tevilat Mashiach is primarily the action of God through Yeshua by the Decisions & Spirit, it is also a mitzvah that calls for a human response of obedience, both from Commentary the one officiating at the immersion – as representing the community of disciples continued who originally received the commandment (Matthew 28:19-20) – and from the one being immersed. Its character as a mitzvah should be expressed through recitation of the mitzvah berachah (’al tevilat HaMashiach) by the officiant and by the response of “Amen” from the one being immersed.
4.4.6 After the recitation of the mitzvah berachah and its response, the officiant will recite in Hebrew and/or in the vernacular the words, “I now immerse you [one may include here the person’s Hebrew name] in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit” (Hineni ani matbil otcha/otach [Hebrew name] beshem HaAv uvshem HaBen uvshem Ruach Hakodesh). ִהְנִני ֲאִני ַמְטִבּיל ֹאְתָך [ֹאָתְך] ,______,ְבֵּשׁם ָָהאב וְּבֵשׁם ַהֵבּן וְּבֵשׁם רוַּח ַה שׁ.
4.5 ZICHRON 4.5.1 Zichron Mashiach is a mitzvah, a commandment of the Messiah. It is not an MASHIACH: optional act of piety but a fundamental expression of God’s covenant with Israel DECISIONS & renewed by the self-offering of Yeshua. COMMENTARY 4.5.2 While Zichron Mashiach was instituted in the context of Pesach, there is no evidence that its practice was ever restricted to that season. It appears that the earliest followers of Yeshua observed it weekly. For practical reasons it is difficult for most Messianic congregations to observe Zichron Mashiach with such frequency. Nevertheless, we should aim to observe it at least monthly.
4.5.3 Zichron Mashiach may be observed in the context of a communal meal. In such a context the bread will be distributed at the beginning of the meal, and the fruit of the vine at the end of the meal. The mitzvah berachah (lizkor et Meshicho) will be recited before partaking of the bread, and an adapted Messianic version of Ya’aleh ve Yavo will be inserted in the third blessing of the grace after meals before the distribution of the fruit of the vine.
4.5.4. Zichron Mashiach may also be observed outside the context of a communal meal. In such cases an adapted version of the Mussaf Amidah will be recited, with the Messianic Ya’aleh ve Yavo inserted in the fourth blessing. The mitzvah berachah (lizkor et Meshicho) will be recited before receiving the bread and fruit of the vine.
4.5.5 Whether celebrated in the context of a communal meal or outside that context, Zichron Mashiach will also include a recitation of the narrative in which Yeshua instituted the rite, including his words of institution. The narrative of institution will be taken from 1 Corinthians 11:24–26, Matthew 26:26–29, or Luke 22:19–20, or consist of a composite of these texts.
4.5.6 Either unleavened or leavened bread may be used in the rite, though unleavened bread is preferred as recalling the original context of Pesach and as binding the rite to a distinctively Jewish type of food (though Challah could also accomplish this end).
MJRC Standards of Observance 48 4.5 Zichron Mashiach: 4.5.7 As in Kiddush generally, either wine or grape juice may be employed in the Decisions & rite, though wine is preferred. To express the sanctity of the event, only kosher Commentary wine or grape juice should be used. continued 4.5.8 In fulfilling the role of representing Yeshua, the bread and the fruit of the vine employed in the rite should be treated with special respect. Just as Jewish tradition ordains that books containing the divine Name be treated with special care, and not be disposed of in a profane manner, so these elements – which in the context of this rite represent for us the divine Name incarnate – should be treated with special care, and remaining portions should be consumed rather than discarded.
4.5.9 Zichron Mashiach expresses, confirms, and deepens the unity of the twofold body of Messiah. Therefore, while our own celebrations of this rite shall be conducted in a way that expresses its inherently Jewish character, we should look for opportunities to welcome Christian friends to share the meal with us. As appropriate situations arise, we should also respond favorably to invitations to share with our Christian friends in their own ecclesial celebrations of this rite.
MJRC Standards of Observance 49 SECTION FIVE Lifecycle
5.0 FAMILY PURITY: f there is anything more personal this is so special, that such an encounter INTRODUCTION I than kashrut, this has to be it: sexuality. immediately puts the persons involved into And as with kashrut, so here, part of the core a temporary special category. They are set Why are there of the issue is one of relational boundaries: aside, not as discarded or rejected, but in boundaries for are we going to accord God the right to respect for the holy otherness of what has sexuality? “intrude” into our sex lives? To the extent just occurred. that we consider God’s prescriptions on Niddah is all about respect for sexuality, for this matter intrusive, we demonstrate our procreation, for the mystery of life and our failure to understand that sex is God’s gift privilege to have such an intimate connection to us, not our own creation, that we are God’s to its creation. servants in every area of life, and that God therefore has every right to make the rules. The second error is to view niddah as a form of deprivation. In reality, it is a matter This doesn’t go down well in our generation. of protection. The constraints of niddah Not only is our culture oversexed and protect the sanctity of sexual relations, overstimulated, we have converted the elevating our awareness that sex is a gift to entire domain of sexuality to a matter of be enjoyed, and never taken for granted. individual rights and preferences. Once the issues are thus described, any input Sexuality is so powerful that it can easily from God can only be viewed as “another control a person, and all of us know people opinion.” But this will not do. whose sex drives drive them. This should not be. Sex is a gift from God to be enjoyed, Two errors must be avoided in seeking to full of developing delights, not something honor God in matters of niddah. First, that controls and drives us, depriving us of the “impurity” (tumah) that attaches to a freedom. When sexuality is fully expressed menstruant woman, or to a man who has within its rightful boundaries, marital joy ejaculated for that matter, has nothing remains conscious, full, and unsullied. to do with “dirtiness.” In the days of our ancestors, this impurity indicated that God’s word about sex therefore is a familiar such a person was temporarily separated one: Enjoy! But the only way this can from normal access to the Tabernacle or happen is to respect the limits God has set, Temple. This is generally interpreted to ever mindful that sexual union is a gift, not mean that when a woman menstruates a personal right. Niddah is a gift from God, or a man ejaculates, we draw near to the given that we might enjoy marital sex, mystery of the creation of life itself – and mindful that it too is a gift from God.
5.1 FAMILY PURITY: According to our basic practice, all sexual relations should be avoided for a full DECISION & seven days from the onset of the woman’s monthly menstrual period, or until the COMMENTARY menstrual period has ended, whichever is longer. The Torah explicitly forbids all sexual relations during a woman’s menstrual period
MJRC Standards of Observance 50 5.1 Family Purity: (Leviticus 18:19; 20:18). It also determines that a menstruant is to be considered Decision & ritually impure (and thus sexually inactive) for seven days from the onset of Commentary menstruation (Leviticus 15:19). Thus, our basic practice adheres to the straightforward continued meaning (peshat) of the biblical text. After dealing with the normal menstrual period (Leviticus 15:19-24), the Torah proceeds to discuss the woman with an extended abnormal discharge (Leviticus 15:25-30). In such cases, the purification process requires seven days from the time the discharge ends (Leviticus 15:28). Jewish tradition combined this latter ruling with the previous unit concerning menstruation, and determined that a normal menstruant must wait seven full days after the cessation of her period (or after five days from the onset of menstruation, if her period lasted less than five days), and then immerse herself in a mikveh. She may then resume having sexual relations with her husband. We view this traditional practice as a commendable fence around the Torah, to be treated with respect. Nevertheless, our basic practice is limited to the requirements contained in the peshat of the biblical law.
MJRC Standards of Observance 51